Kingdom of God

Prof.M.M.Ninan

“THY KINGDOM COME”
© Prof. M. M. Ninan
Prof.M.M.Ninan
5708 Rudy Dr
San Jose
CA 95124

EASOW MAR TIMOTHEOS EPISCOPA MEMORIAL
LECTURE Nov 25, 2008
at
Easow Mar Timotheos Memorial
Evangelist's Training Institute
HOSKOTE MISSION & MEDICAL CENTER
Marthoma Church, Karnata State, India.
EASOW MAR TIMOTHEOS EPISCOPA [1932-1998]
In order to encourage the evangelistic activities in Karnataka, Easow Mar
Timotheos Memorial Evangelists’ Training Institute was started in1991.
After the training in this Institute, 95 youths are now serving in Various
places). Rev James M Koshy Veeramala is serving as the Principal, Rev.
P .V. Philip, Rev. Sabu Thomas, Rev. Johnson T Unnithan, Rev, J.
Chinnadurai, Rev. Dr. Sudarsan Mr. V. M. Kattappuram and Evg.
Kunjamma Philip are working as teachers and Evg Y Philip as warden and
teacher.
Every year, November 25 is celebrated as the Bible School Day. The
Easow Mar Timotheos Memorial Lecture is conducted on that day. Prof.
M. M. Ninan gave the Memorial Lecture in 2008 on the subject of Kingdom
of God which forms the core of this book. The Hoskote Mission forms the
background of the message.

Marthoma Church, Karnata State, India.
Hoskote Mission was founded in the year 1947, when India becameindependent.
What started as a small prayer fellowship has grown up into
one of the well established missions of the Mar Thoma Church. The Vision
and encouragement of visionary Rev. M.C Chandy (late Most Rev. Dr.
Alexander Marthoma) has been a driving force behind this massive
growth. The commitment of Rev. Rev. AC Zechariah and Mr. M T. Joseph
were also constructive in the development of this mission. It has also been
nurtured by dedicated missionaries mission workers,
Missionary
Rev James M Koshy Veramala is serving as the missionary . Rev P V
Philip also involved in all the activities of the mission though he is retired
from the active service of the church
Evangelists
Evg V J Joseph, Evg Suman Kumar, Evg Baiju K George, Evg
Arulananda, Evg Daniel, Evg Koshy Thomas, Evg Vijay Bhaskar, Evg Y
Philip, and Evg Kujamma Philip are the 10 evangelists working in Various
localities under this mission.
The Mission Hospital
There are times when compromises just
will not do., but the very best of technology,
medical expertise, and care is needed to
bring relief, to save a life, to bring hope to
families. The no compromise service at
best cost make Hoskote Mission Hospital a
perfect choice of the poor and needy

Genesis
The hospital was started in the year 1965 with an aim to serve the poor
and needy villages in and around Hoskote.The hoskote mission hospital
has 5 Residential Doctors, 9 consultants and 7O other workers working for
the hospital this is now a 250 bedded
hospital in territory care
It renders services different areas of
medicine like, General medicine, General
Surgery, Pediatrics, Gynecology, E.N.T,
Dental and Dermatology etc. The hospital
provides free and subsidized treatments to
deserving people. The patients receives
wellness of body, mind and spirit after the
treatment
Mission
Our main objectives are:
1. To provide medical services in the most congenial, friendly and
reassuring environment for every body
2. To provide best medical attention by combining medical expertise
and medical equipments for the health care of people at
reasonable cost
3. We will work enthusiastically and sincerely to save life because it
is precious to all of us.
4. We will perform this "Noble Duty" with a smile.
5. More importantly to give the patient the best treatment by treating
them as the most important person whose satisfaction shall be
looked into in every detail and shall be given utmost priority.
Our motto is to give the best
treatment for poor and needy
Nursing School
Hoskote Mission Institute of nursing
(HMIN)was started in the year 1996
with the recognition of Karnataka
Nursing Council and Indian Nursing
Council This year 8 students got
distinction and 32'students-got First

class The students are trained for character development and spiritual life
along with their studies. At present 150 students are studying in this
institution. Ms. Shani E Mathew is serving as Principal.
Mission Activities
Missionary : l
Evangelists : l0
Villages : 120
Church : l
Chapel : 9
Believers : 2000
Seekers :1000
Sunday-School
Mission Hospital
Doctors : l4
Departments : 11
Beds : 100
Village Clinics, Medical Camps
Health Awareness Seminars
Medical insurance for poor
patients
Mission Nursing School
Teachers :14
Students : 150
Easow Mar Timotheos
Memorial
Bible School
Centers: 9
Students : 600
VBS
Centers : 8
Children : 3000
Child Development Centers
Centers : 2
Students : 560
Teachers: 28
Co-coordinators & Staff: l0
Leprosy Centre
Patients : 250
Supervisor : 1
Doctor : l
Hospital Staff : 5
Destitute Home (Shanthi
Mandiram)
Sevinees : 3
Inmates : 30
Tailoring Training Centre
Course Duration : 6 months
Students : 72
Staff : 3
Students : 12
Course duration : 3yrs
Medium of Instruction : Kannada
Dr. Joseph Mar lrenaeus
Suffragan Metropolitan
Jubilee
Counseling Centre
(TOF Project of Y'smen
International Bourdilon
Bangalore)
Doctor: l
Staff: 5
Activity: HIV/AIDS, Awareness.
Care and Counseling

THY KINGDOM COME
PROF. M. M. NINAN
CONTENTS
Chapter One
THE CONCEPT OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD
Chapter Two
THE JEWISH UNDERSTANDING OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD/HEAVEN
Chapter Three
JEWISH MYSTIC UNDERSTANDING OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD
Chapter Four
THE CENTRALITY OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD IN THE SCRIPTURE
Chapter Five
SPECTRUM OF MEANINGS OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD
Chapter Six
THE PLAN OF REDEMPTION THROUGH CHRIST
Chapter Seven
THE PRESENT HOPE
Chapter Eight
THE GROWTH OF THE KINGDOM ON EARTH
Chapter Nine
THE KINGDOM OF GOD
Chapter Ten
PRINCIPLES OF POWER IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD
Chapter Eleven
PRINCIPLES OF PROSPERITY IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD

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Chapter One
THE CONCEPT OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD
Mathews Kingdom of Heaven and Mark-Luke’s Kingdom of
God
The Kingdom of God or Reign of God in is a foundational concept in
the three Abrahamic faiths of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. In
Christianity, it constitutes the central theme of the message of
Jesus of Nazareth in the synoptic Gospels.
In the synoptic Gospels (which were all written in Greek),Mark and
Luke use the Greek term "Basileia tou Theou," which translate as
"Kingdom of God." In contrast Matthew prefers the Greek term
"Basileia tōn Ouranōn" (Βασιλεία τῶν Ουρανῶν) which has been
translated as "Kingdom of Heaven." The phrase “kingdom of God”
occurs 68 times in 10 different New Testament books, while
“kingdom of heaven” occurs only 32 times, and only in the Gospel
of Matthew. In Matthew the Kingdom is mentioned 55 times, out of
which 35 times it is used with connection to the "Kingdom of
Heaven"
of God
hē basileiā toú theoú for The Kingdom
- hē basileiā tōẹn ouranōẹn : for The
Kingdom of Heaven
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Scholars think that Matthean text adopted the Greek word for
"heaven" instead of the Greek word for "God” because, unlike Mark
and Luke, the gospel of Mathew was written by a Jew for the
Jewish audience. Traditionally Jews avoided the use of the world
“God” as much as possible. This is based on the commandment:
(Exo 20:7) "You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in
vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in
vain.”
Avoiding the usage totally will be the easy solution to the chance of
misuse.
During the reading of the scriptures whenever they came across the
world “God” (Yhwh ) they substituted other words. When it
refers to the Person of Godhead, the word “Lord” (Adonai =
"Lord") is used and when it refers to the impersonal ultimate level,
the word “Heaven”, being the place where God is considered to be
living, was used.
[Gen 24:7 The LORD, the God of heaven]
In Matthew 19:16-24, Christ uses “kingdom of heaven” to speak of
the spiritual kingdom. “Then Jesus said to his disciples, ‘I tell you
the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven’”
(v. 23). In the very next verse, Jesus says, “Again I tell you, it is
easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich
man to enter the kingdom of God.” Thus, Christ uses the phrases
“kingdom of God” and “kingdom of heaven” interchangeably.
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Thus, the simplest explanation would be that heaven is a name for
God. Thus in the parable of the Prodigal Son, the penitent Son
says,
Luk 15:18 I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him,
"Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you”
Thus in keeping with their custom, Matthew, used the word
"heaven" instead of "God." If this is true then we should consider
that the two concepts are identitcal.
However it is also possible that Matthew was using the Jewish
mystical understanding of the Kingdom of Heaven and Kingdom of
God. To understand this we need to look into the Jewish
cosmology of Kaballah.
Thus we can make a distinction between Kingdom of God and
Kingdom of Heaven with Kingdom of God including the subset of
Kingdom of Heaven. This is the view taken by Scofield.
Five distinctions Kingdom of God and Kingdom of Heaven
Scofield comments on Matthew 6:33 that the kingdom of God can
be distinguished from the kingdom of heaven in five respects.
1. The kingdom of God is universal and includes angels and saints
of all ages.
2. The kingdom of God is entered only by the new birth.
3. The kingdom of God and the kingdom of heaven “have almost all
things in common.”
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4. The kingdom of God is chiefly inward and spiritual while the
Kingdom of Heaven is a realized Kingdom in real world.
5. The kingdom of God merges into the kingdom of heaven when
Christ puts all things under His feet.
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Chapter Two
THE JEWISH UNDERSTANDING OF THE KINGDOM OF
GOD/HEAVEN
The Jewish understanding of the Kingdom of Heaven can be
traced from the Mosaic revelation. Before the law was given God
himself came down on the Mount Sinai and dwelt among the people
of Israel and showed himself to the people of Israel. The laws itself
was handed down to them directly by word of mouth by the Lord.
Covenant between God and Israel
The covenant itself was sealed by God with his direct presence in
the covenant dinner with 70 elders and Moses, Aaron, Nadab and
Abhihu.
(Exo 24:9-11) Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu,
and seventy of the elders of Israel: and they saw the God of Israel;
and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of sapphire
stone and as it were the very heaven for clearness. And upon the
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nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: and they beheld
God, and did eat and drink.
Here is a typical court of the King with his ministers in a dinner
setting. The reason why God entered into covenant with Israel was
to make them his people in the ultimate plan of redemption of the
cosmos.
Exo 19:6 “and ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and a holy
nation.”
God among his People
So Israel was to be a kingdom with God as their King. But their
business was to serve as priests to the rest of the world.
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After the covenant wherever the Israelites encamped, God the King
was in residence in the middle of the congregation of Israel in his
tabernacle with the Levites surrounding the tabernacle close to it
and all the twelve tribes with their standards encamping all around.
This is described in Numbers 2.
When they entered into the land of Canaan, God resided in the
midst of the people in the tabernacle with the charismatic Judges
ruling under the guidance and the inspiration of God. However the
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people wanted a visible King. When they asked for a king like all
other nations God was sad. The government of Israel upto this point
was a theocracy, in which God himself ruled directly through his
divine laws as given by God’s hand through Moses
1Sa 8:7 “And the LORD said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice
of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not
rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not be king
over them.”
Israel under Kings
Thus, Israel came under the worldly Kings instead of God the King.
God clearly told the Israel the difference and the consequences of
that choice. Samuel was chosen as the King. In fact Samuel acted
very much like a Judge and lived with the people. With the sublime
conception of God as King, the actual monarchy was only a
compromise, the reigning monarch passing for Yahweh's
representative on earth. God was still in control of the Kingdom
through his Prophets and Priests who directly go themselves
involved with the executive power of the Kings. This idea of
monarch as representative of God on earth is still indicated in the
coronation of monarchs by the priests. Thus the checks and
balance did work to a great extent. In David, the man after God's
own heart, the compromise was not unsatisfactory. David was of
contrite heart and heeded the angry outbursts of the Prophets.
Politics and religion gradually got independent. In Solomon it was
still tolerable, but by the end of Solomon’s era, the grips of the
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prophets were lost. Within the divided kingdom, YHVH lost all
control.
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The period of Kings showed how Kingship of the world is in direct
opposition to the Kingship of God. However the Israelic concept of
Mesiah was based mostly on the earthly Kingdom.
In Daniel 2:44 Daniel says, "the 'God of heaven' will set up a
'kingdom' which will never be destroyed."
God's Kingdom is described in many of the canonical and
deutrocanonical scriptures. Some of them can be found in: Ps. xxii.
29 (A.V.28), ciii.19, cxlv.11-13; Ob. 21; Dan. iii.33 (A.V.iv.3);
Tobit,xiii.1; Sibyllines,iii.47-48, Psalms of Solomon, xvii.3; Wisdom,
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x.10; Assump.Moses,x.1; Song of the Three Holy Children, 33;
Enoch, lxxxiv. 2.
The Lord shall be King
The words "The Lord shall be King" are translated in the Targum
commentary on the books of Moses as, "The Kingdom of God shall
be revealed"; and the ancient Jewish liturgy culminates in the
prayer that "God may establish His Kingdom speedily” But there is a
precondition to the establishment of The Kingdom of God which is
dependent on the community of God. Man must "take upon himself
the yoke of the Kingdom of God" or the Kingdom of Heaven ("'Ol
Malkut Shamayim"). This submission is expressed by Israel in the
daily reciting the Shema' (Ber. ii. 2); and by the angels when when
they sing their "Thrice Holy" (Hekalot); and in the future "all men
shall take upon themselves the yoke of the Kingdom of God when
casting away their idols" (Mek., Beshallaḥ, 'Amalek, 2).
According to the Prophecy of Ezekiel, YHVH will establish the New
Jerusalem with all the twelve tribes around. See Ez. 48:28-35 See
figure below.
According to the Midrash (Cant. R. ii. 12), "when the Kingdom
of Rome has ripened enough to be destroyed, the Kingdom of
God will appear." The same concept is repeated in the
revelation of John.
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Scofield commentary on Mat.3.2 gives:
The phrase, kingdom of heaven (literally, of the heavens), is peculiar
to Matthew and signifies the Messianic earth rule of Jesus Christ,
the Son of David. It is called the kingdom of the heavens because it
is the rule of the heavens over the earth (Mat 6:10) The phrase is
derived from Daniel, where it is defined; (Dan 2:34-36); (Dan 2:44);
(Dan 7:23-27) as the kingdom which the God of heaven will set up
after the destruction by "the stone cut out without hands," of the
Gentile world-system. It is the kingdom covenanted to David's seed
(2Sa 7:7-10) described in the prophets; and confirmed to Jesus the
Christ, the Son of Mary, through the angel Gabriel (Luk 1:32-33).
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Chapter Three
JEWISH MYSTIC UNDERSTANDING OF THE KINGDOM
OF GOD
The Kabbalah is the traditional Jewish mystical system which is
said to have been handed down orally through Moses. It presents
two porcesses.
1. "Maaseh B'reshit" or "Work of Creation" - offers reasoned
arguments with regard to the problem of the presence of Evil.
The basic theodicy problem is how if God being an Absolute
Unity of the Divine could make possible the existence of
separate intelligences with the capacity of total free will, with the
ability to choose "Evil" (which is moving in opposition to God) or
"Good" (which is moving in consonance with God).
2. "Maaseh Merkavah" or "Work of the Chariot" - is a process of
Life through which Redemption and Return ("Tshuvah") of the
deviant beings are effectively accomplished whereby the
Kingdom of God is re-established to make all things new.
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In the Kaballah, the Kingdom of God consists of four dimensions of
existence within the unknowable God who is above and beyond
these four. However our comos which interact with each other are
the dimensions of Kingdom, Mind, Spirit and Divine. The last three
form the three heavens. The supreme God interacts with these
realms of existence and its being through his emanations. It should
be however understood that emanations are not really creations of
God or themselves God. Emanations are special parts or limbs of
God which reaches down. However we can understand God only
through these emanations which acts as the means of
understanding. This is in direct contrast to the concept of
emanations in the Gnostic thought where they form lower gods.
These emanations are named after specific principal
characteristics.
Even though these emanations are not mentioned directly as in
Jewish mysticism, they are mentioned in places where Yhvh is
described or praised. One such occurrence is found in the
Betzal'el's qualifications for building the Tabernacle. God says that
He gave him great insight into the three higher Sefirot:
Ex 31:3 - "And I have filled him with the Spirit of God (Keter), in
wisdom (Chokmah), and in understanding (Binah), and in
knowledge (Da'at), and in all manner of workmanship."
The seven lower Sefirot can be found in
1Ch 29:11 "Yours, O HaShem, is the greatness(Chesed), and the
power (Gevurah), and the glory (Tiferet), and the victory (Netzach),
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and the majesty (Hod): for all (Yesod) that is in the heaven and in
the earth is Yours; Yours is the kingdom(Malkut), O HaShem, and
You are exalted as Head above all."
It is this that is represented as a Kaballah tree with three branches
and ten sefiroths. These constitute the four worlds.
The four worlds are:
1. Azilut (Emanation) - the eternal unchanging Divine world.
This is the third heaven of Paul
2. Beriah (Creation) The Spiritual Realm - considered
"Heaven" proper, it is the first separation from the Divine,
and "location" of the Throne of God and of the Archangels.
This represents the spiritual ability of the mind’s
capacity to envision and then make it manifest.
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3. Yezirah (Formation) – The Mental World, the abode of the
"lower angels," men's souls and the Garden of Eden
4. Asiyyah (Action, the World Of full expression) - the material
universe in which we live. Tradition teaches that in each
person is a holy breath of God and that our true nature
reflects as well as vibrates with God’s love/light and it is
through the harmonious interfacing of the emotions, the
body, the mind and the spirit that we express our divinity.
The four worlds as they relate to one another in creation, are
mentioned in Isaiah’s book:
Isaiah 43:7 - Even every one that is called by my name: for I have
created him for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him.
1. Called
2. Created
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3. Formed
4. Made
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We simply mention without details the basic Tree of Life.
The Tree of Life is supported by Three Pillars:
The Right Pillar of Mercy—Active, Masculine - Father
The Left Pillar of Judgment—Passive, Feminine – Holy Spirit
The Middle Pillar of Equilibrium and Balance – Son
The Ten Sephiroth of the Tree of Life:
1. Kether—The Crown, Top of the Tree of Life.
2. Chokhmah—Wisdom
3. Binah—Understanding
4. Chesed—Mercy or Gedulah - Magnanimity
5. Din—Judgment or Gevurah - Power
6. Tiferet—Beauty
7. Netzach—Victory
8. Hod—Glory or Splendor
9. Yesod—The Foundation
10. Malkhuth—The Kingdom complements Keter, and
represents the presence of God in the material world and
the feminine presence of God.
11. Da’at—non-sephiroth representing knowledge from God.
Thus the heavens do not form one world, but several dimensions. In
every dimension there are sentient beings and non sentient beings.
Sentient beings are evolved from the creation but the Spirit of God
entering in them makes them freewilled beings and Sons of God.
As such they have varying degrees of authorities and orders of life.
They form hierarchy of beings in the same way as the biological life
as conceived in evolutionary tree as studied in biology.
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“Tikkun Olam”- Reformation" of the Worlds, "Reparation of the
Universe".
One of the key tenets of the Kabbalah is that full Perfection can
exist only in the Material Realm. The beings in the other realms are
incomplete in terms of God’s ultimate creative fruit. Man alone has
the ability to be in all the four dimensions and hence Man is the
ultimate Child of God. Man was formed and breathed into at the end
of all creative processes. Hence it is the duty of Man to act as
repairers of the breaches in the Universe. The concept of tikkun
olam or repairing the world through social action, is one of the
functions of the tzedak (righteous). This reflects the Jewish values
of Justice (tzedakah), Compassion (hesed) and Peace (shalom). It
is a call to action - to repair the world through social action. It
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recognizes that each act of kindness, no matter how small, helps to
build a new world.
This is in sharp contrast with the Gnostic teachings where Material
realm is considered as evil and escape from this material world is
considered as salvation
The
Four
Worlds
Sephiroths
YHVH
"Downward View"
(begin at Azilut)
"Upward View"
(begin at
Asiyyah)
Azilut
Keter
Chokmah
Binah
"Y"
(Yod)
The world
of
Emanation
“Called”
The Divine
unchanging realm,
the "archetypal"
Sephirot and the
"Names of God."
Pure Will
Realm of Eyn Sof
Godly Unity
Contact with the
Divine.
Beriah
Chesed
Gevurah
Tiferet
"H"
("greater"
Hey)
The world
of Creation
“Created”
The beginning of the
Creation account,
realm of the
archangels, and
"Throne room" of
God.
Intellect/Thought
Realm of the Throne
The level of
prophecy
transcending
linear time and
space (i.e., Moses
in Torah and John
in Revelation).
Yetzirah
Netzach
Hod
Yesod
"V"
(Vav)
The world
of
Formation
“Formed”
The dynamic world
of transition with
"lower angels"
carrying out the will
of God from Beriah
to Asiyyah.
Emotional/Speech
Realm of Angels
The level of the
soul and
beginning of
deeper spiritual
understanding.
The realm of most
prophetic
revelation.
Asiyyah
Malkut
"H"
("lesser"
Hey)
The world
of Action
“Made”
Completed
in
perfection.
Physical man and
the Earth.
Physical/Actions
Realm of the
Shekinah
The "lower face"
of Asiyyah is
biological man.
The "upper face"
of Asiyyah is the
psyche and holds
the opportunity of
man's
advancement to
the higher worlds.
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Malkuth Not as territory but a dominion or dimension
The word “kingdom” is a translation of the Greek word “basileia”
which in turn is a translation of the words "malkuth" in Hebrew and
"malkutha" in Aramaic. These words do not define kingdom by
territory but by dominion. This idea is indicated in the teachings of
Jesus where Jesus says of the Kingdom of God that one cannot
say, “Look here it is!” or “There it is!” Luke 17:21. The Catechism of
the Catholic Church also states that the word basileia has the
same connotation and can be translated as "kingship," "kingdom"
or "reign" (CCC 2816).
The word Malkuth is derived from the Greek word for base or
foundation.
A clear understanding of the meaning can be obtained from the
mystical Rabbinic understanding of the Malkuth in the Kabbalistic
tree where it is found at the bottom of the Kaballa tree. Malkuth
("kingdom"; ‏,(מלכות or Shekhinah is the tenth of the sephirot in the
Kabbalistic Tree of Life. It sits at the bottom of the Tree.
Spirit of God in Malkut with freedom
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Unlike the other nine sephirot, Malkut is an attribute of God which
does not emanate from God directly. Rather it emanates or evolved
out of God's creation. God formed these Malkuth sentients – when
that creation reflects and evinces God's glory from within itself. We
have no direct revelation regarding the creation of Angels and
beings in other realms. But we know for certain that there were
Sons of God in realms other than the earth and in other stars and
probably dimensions. This is indicated in the book of job.
Job 38:4-7 “Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the
earth? Declare, if thou hast understanding. Who determined the
measures thereof, if thou knowest? Or who stretched the line upon
it? Whereupon were the foundations thereof fastened? Or who laid
the corner stone thereof; when the morning stars sang together,
and all the sons of God shouted for joy?
But we know that Man was not created. Malkuth beings, especially
Man was formed out of the Prakriti and God breathed into him and
“He became a living soul” He was evolved from the creation and
God’s Spirit was given to him and lives within him. This is what
made “Adam, son of God.”
Material Realm
Malkuth means Kingdom. It is associated with the realm of matter
and relates to the physical world, the planets and the solar system.
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Malkut as the Bride
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In the mystical world of Kaballah, Symbols associated with every
sphere and the symbol associated with Malkuth this are a Bride (a
young woman on a throne with a veil over her face) and a double
cubed altar. It is also referred to as the bride of Macroprosopos,
where Macroprosops is Kether or Crown. Thus Malkuth in Christian
interpretation becomes the bride of the Crown (Kether).
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Malkuth is a very similar archetypal idea to that of the Muladhwara
chakra, in Shakta tantra of Indian Saktha theology.
In the tree it is placed symetrically with the Kether with the Chasm
as a point of reflection. Hermetic maxim therefore terms Malkuth as
a reflection of Godhead himself or as its female counterpart. 'As
above so below' – the bride of Christ.
Daath – Chasm of seperation between Kether and MalKut
However there is a Chasm or gulf as sefiroth called Daath which
seperates Kether and Malkuth which is to be overcome when alone
Malchut can become the Wife (Queen) of Kether.
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Since man cannot cross the chasm of her own, the bridegroom
himself crossed the chasm to seek his bride and takes her with him.
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Chapter Four
THE CENTRALITY OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD IN THE
SCRIPTURE
The dispersed Jewish nation dreamed of returning to their
motherland and their understanding of the Kingdom of God is tied to
the concept of how God will restore the nation of Israel to the land.
Ever since the rebuilding of the temple, the hope of the coming of
the Mesia as King remained an unfulfilled dream.
By the time of Jesus there were four major religious groups in
existence.
(1) The Sadducees, were rationalist materialists of the three. They
refused to accept any such dream and concentrated on what is now
and here. Indeed, had no participation in these dreams.
(2) Pharisees remained faithful to the prophetic traditions.
(3) But it was the Zealots who embraced in it and actively tried to
pave way by forceful entry with the hope of the advent of the mesia,
which was expected from Daniel’s prophecy.
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(4) The true custodians, of these hope were the Prosdechomenoi, -
they that “waited for the kingdom of God.” To this class belonged
such men as Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea (Luk 23:51)
When we come to the New Testament, the central theme seems to
be this crossing of the chasm by the by the bridegroom – The Christ
– and taking up the bride the Church and eventual realization of the
Kingdom of God in its fulness.
John the Baptist: The King is coming
Before the King himself comes to the scene, he sends his
messenger John the Baptist with the message, "Repent, for the
Kingdom of Heaven is at hand."
Mat 3:1-3 And in those days cometh John the Baptist, preaching in
the wilderness of Judaea, saying, Repent ye; for the kingdom of
heaven is at hand. For this is he that was spoken of by Isaiah the
prophet, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make ye
ready the way of the Lord, Make his paths straight.
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He describes the Kingdom as follows:
Luk 3:4-6 as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the
prophet, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make ye ready
the way of the Lord, Make his paths straight. Every valley shall be
filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low; and the
crooked shall become straight, and the rough ways smooth; and all
flesh shall see the salvation of God.
The King appears
When the King himself appears, John introduces him with the
enigmatic proclamation
Joh 1:29 On the morrow he seeth Jesus coming unto him, and
saith, Behold, the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the
world!
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Thus we are led to another aspect of the Kingdom – which is to be
a sinless world. This also directs us to the total redemption of the
cosmos which is kept under decay till the time of redemption.
We see the King here not as a wearer of crown and authority
wielding a sword but as one coming to serve and to die for this
world. These have long reaching implications.
As John the Baptist’s ministry came to an end Jesus takes up the
mission and the message that Jesus brings is exactly same as that
of John.
Jesus went forth proclaiming the identical message
Mar 1:14-15 Now after that John was delivered up, Jesus came
into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, The
time(kairos) is fulfilled (pleroô), and the kingdom of God is at
hand: repent ye, and believe in the gospel.
Matt 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, "Repent,
for the Kingdom of Heaven has drawn near (êggiken).
Luke 16:16 The law and the prophets were until John; since then
the good news of the Kingdom of God is preached, and every one
enters it violently.
Matt 11:12 From the days of John the Baptist until now the
Kingdom of Heaven forcefully advances, and men of violence take it
by force.
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The Ministry of the Twelve: Recruiting Jews
When Jesus sends out the twelve to the Jews, he tells them that the
message they are to preach is the same.
Mat 10:5-8 These twelve Jesus sent forth, and charged them,
saying, Go not into any way of the Gentiles, and enter not into any
city of the Samaritans: but go rather to the lost sheep of the house
of Israel. And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is
at hand. Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out
devils: freely ye received, freely give.
John and Jesus preached the nearness of God’s kingdom. "The
kingdom of God has come near you," Jesus told his disciples to say
after they healed the sick (Matthew 10:7; cf. Luke 10:9, 11).
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Thus it was a central theme in the earthly ministry of Jesus. During
his ministry the commission was to enroll the Jewish nation as his
aide.
However it was evident that the concept of Kingdom of God that
Jesus presented differed considerably from those of the Jews of his
time. According to B. Weiss the difference can be summarized in
two halves of the phrase. The Jews emphasized “the kingdom”
while Jesus emphasized “of God.” The Jewish understanding of the
mesia and the Kingdom the mesia was going to build was
essentially nationalistic in nature. They were thinking of the world
dominion of the Jewish nation under the leadership of the Mesiah.
They were thinking of the expulsion of the Romans, of a Jewish
king and court, and of a world-wide dominion going forth from Mt.
Zion.
It was Jesus' deliberate association of Himself with the prophecy in
Daniel that inflamed the chief priests and settled the resolve of the
Sanhedrin to execute Jesus.
Mar 14:61-63 and he was keeping silent, and did not answer
anything. Again the chief priest was questioning him, and saith to
him, `Art thou the Christ--the Son of the Blessed?' And Jesus said,
`I am; and ye shall see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of
the power, and coming with the clouds, of the heaven.' And the
chief priest, having rent his garments, saith, `What need have we
yet of witnesses?
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The triumphal entry into Jerusalem at the Passover week was a
deliberate act of fulfillment of Zechariah's prophecy.
Mat 21:6-15 And the disciples having gone and having done as
Jesus commanded them, brought the ass and the colt, and did put
on them their garments, and set him upon them; and the very great
multitude spread their own garments in the way, and others were
cutting branches from the trees, and were strewing in the way, and
the multitudes who were going before, and who were following,
were crying, saying, `Hosanna to the Son of David, blessed is he
who is coming in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest.'
And he having entered into Jerusalem, all the city was moved,
saying, `Who is this?' And the multitudes said, `This is Jesus the
prophet, who is from Nazareth of Galilee.'
And Jesus entered into the temple of God, and did cast forth all
those selling and buying in the temple, and the tables of the money-
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changers he overturned, and the seats of those selling the doves,
and he saith to them, `It hath been written, My house a house of
prayer shall be called, but ye did make it a den of robbers.'
And
there came to him blind and lame men in the temple, and he healed
them,
and the chief priests and the scribes having seen the
wonderful things that he did, and the children crying in the temple,
and saying, `Hosanna to the Son of David,' were much displeased;
Even the disciples expected Jesus to be King, as is seen in the
request of Mrs.Zebedee
Mat 20:20 -25 Then came near to him the mother of the sons of
Zebedee, with her sons, bowing and asking something from him,
and he said to her, `What wilt thou?' She saith to him, `Say, that
they may sit--these my two sons--one on thy right hand, and one on
the left, in thy reign.'
But Jesus was quick to point out the difference of his Kingship from
what they were expecting it to be.
Mat 20:22-23 And Jesus answering said, `Ye have not known what
ye ask for yourselves; are ye able to drink of the cup that I am about
to drink? and with the baptism that I am baptized with, to be
baptized?' They say to him, `We are able.' And he saith to them,
`Of my cup indeed ye shall drink, and with the baptism that I am
baptized with ye shall be baptized; but to sit on my right hand and
on my left is not mine to give, but--to those for whom it hath been
prepared by my father.'
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Jesus did act out the prophecy in the perfect manner which raised
the expectations of the multitude of the immanent advent of the
Kingdom under Jesus. He was indeed the royal heir to the throne
of David and he entered Jerusalem in a triumphal entry on
Passover declaring freedom. But he refused to restore the nation of
Israel. Not only that the Jewish nation was not restored, he even
predicted the destruction of the temple. Jesus did teach that He
was going to be the King, but he did not want His followers to
expect an immediate kingdom (Luke 19:11-12), and then his
Kingdom was totally different as one can see from his reply to
zebedees and the later explanation regarding what Kingdom of God
is like.
Thus on every occasion Jesus made it clear that his Kingdom was
not the Kingdom of this world [Hebrew: olam hazeh, "this world, or
age"].
Joh 18:36 My kingdom is not of this world.
With all the authority and power confirmed with signs and miracles,
Jesus had the qualifications of the messiah and the common Jews
wanted Jesus to take it over and establish the Kingdom right away.
Jesus was indeed talking about the establishment of the Kingdom,
but they could not see it coming. This conflict is seen throughout the
ministry of Jesus. People were pressing him to act and take over
the Jewish Kingdom from Rome. But Jesus consistently refused to
do that. Several occasions Jesus had to escape from the scene to
avoid the multitude taking him by force to act as earthly king.
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Joh 6:15 Jesus, therefore, having known that they are about to
come, and to take him by force that they may make him king, retired
again to the mountain himself alone.
The decision to force Jesus into acting with powers from heaven
and precipitate the declaration of Kingship was the probable reason
that prompted Judas to betray Jesus.
However Judas was gravely mistaken as to the nature of the
Kingdom.
Jesus would not deny being Messiah King . When Pilate questioned
Him about His kingship, Christ replied, "For this cause I was born"
Joh 18:33-35 Pilate, therefore, entered into the praetorium again,
and called Jesus, and said to him, `Thou art the King of the Jews?'
Jesus answered him, `From thyself dost thou say this? or did others
say it to thee about me?' Pilate answered, `Am I a Jew? thy nation,
and the chief priests did deliver thee up to me; what didst thou?'
(37)Pilate, therefore, said to him, `Art thou then a king?' Jesus
answered, `Thou dost say it ; because a king I am, I for this have
been born, and for this I have come to the world, that I may testify
to the truth; every one who is of the truth, doth hear my voice.'
Again Jesus immediately points out the difference in the definition
of His Kingdom
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John 18:36 Jesus answered, `My kingdom is not of this world; if my
kingdom were of this world, my officers had struggled that I might
not be delivered up to Jews; but now my kingdom is not from
hence.'
Yet the accusation that Jesus as a rebel leader of insurrection
remained and formed the closing argument of Christ's accusers,
who used this seditious charge.
Joh 19:12-15 From this time was Pilate seeking to release him,
and the Jews were crying out, saying, `If this one thou mayest
release, thou art not a friend of Caesar; every one making himself a
king, doth speak against Caesar.'
Pilate, therefore, having heard this word, brought Jesus without--
and he sat down upon the tribunal--to a place called, `Pavement,'
and in Hebrew, Gabbatha; and it was the preparation of the
Passover, and as it were the sixth hour, and he saith to the Jews,
`Lo, your king!' and they cried out, `Take away, take away, crucify
him;' Pilate saith to them, `Your king shall I crucify?' the chief priests
answered, `We have no king except Caesar.'
This was what led him to the cross. This became the focus of the
soldiers' ridicule and torture.
Joh 19:2-3 and the soldiers having plaited a crown of thorns, did
place it on his head, and a purple garment they put around him,
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and said, `Hail! the king of the Jews;' and they were giving him
slaps.
The accusation of Jesus was written above Him on the cross.
Joh 19:19 And Pilate also wrote a title, and put it on the cross, and
it was written, `Jesus the Nazarene, the king of the Jews;'
But the mission of Jesus remained same all the time even at the
face of death and even on the cross
In the Olivet prophecy, Jesus makes it clear that the kingdom would
come only after certain signs and apocalyptic events. Yet in the
Kingdom parables Jesus indicates a gradual growth of the Kingdom
from the seeds which will grow into the ultimate realization in
catastrophic events from heaven. These parables suggest that
the kingdom starts in reality before it comes in a powerful and
dramatic way. It is both in the future with beginnings now.
Mark 1:15, John announced, "The time has come…. The kingdom
of God is near." Both these verbs are in the past perfect tense,
which indicates that something has happened and its results
continue. The time had come not just for the announcement but
also for the kingdom.
Matthew 12:28, Luke 11:20"If I drive out demons by the Spirit of
God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you"
The Great Commission
While during his earthly ministry, he tried to enroll the Jewish nation
in the bringing the Kingdom as God expected of them, this seems to
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have changed and the mission was open to all nationalities. This
change of widening of the field took place essentially after the
resurrection, during the 40 days when Jesus was with his disciples.
The teaching of the resurrected Jesus was also of the same theme.
Act 1:2-3 until the day in which he was received up, after that he
had given commandment through the Holy Ghost unto the apostles
whom he had chosen: To whom he also shewed himself alive after
his passion by many proofs, appearing unto them by the space of
forty days, and speaking the things concerning the kingdom of God:
At the end of the forty days just before the assumption Jesus gave
the Great Commission, which says:” All authority has been given to
me in heaven and on earth" where Jesus declares his Kingship.
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Mat 28:18-20 And Jesus came to them and spake unto them,
saying, All authority hath been given unto me in heaven and on
earth.
Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing
them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy
Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I
commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end
of the world.
The King is here but not the Kingdom. The full realization of the
Kingdom was transferred to the disciples.
Col 1:12-14 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us
meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who
hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated
us into the kingdom of his dear Son: In whom we have redemption
through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:
Heb 12:28-29 Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be
moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably
with reverence and godly fear: For our God is a consuming fire.
Rev 1:6 And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his
Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
1Pe 2:9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an
holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises
of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light:
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Apostolic Mission
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The mission of the disciples in building the Kingdom started with the
Pentecost. Peter’s preaching on the day of Pentecost he
proclaims:
Act 2:36 Let all the house of Israel therefore know assuredly, that
God hath made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom ye
crucified.
Jesus is still proclaimed as the messiah which the Jews were
expecting even though the great commission was to preach the
gospel to all creation.
Philip
(Act 8:5)
And Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and
proclaimed unto them the Christ.
Act 8:12 …Philip preaching good tidings concerning the kingdom of
God and the name of Jesus Christ…
Paul
Act 14:22 confirming the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to
continue in the faith, and that through many tribulation we must
enter into the kingdom of God.
When Paul came to Ephesus
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Act 19:8 he entered into the synagogue, and spake boldly for the
space of three months, reasoning and persuading as to the things
concerning the kingdom of God. When Paul makes his final farewell
to the Ephesian elders, he reminds them that his preaching has
been about "the kingdom of God."
Act 20:25 And now, behold, I know that ye all, among whom I went
about preaching the kingdom, shall see my face no more.
At the conclusion of his history in Acts of Apostles, Luke portrays
Paul at Rome, expounding this thesis on the Kingdom of God and
Jesus the King.
Act 28:23 And when they had appointed him a day, they came to
him into his lodging in great number; to whom he expounded the
matter, testifying the kingdom of God, and persuading them
concerning Jesus, both from the law of Moses and from the
prophets, from morning till evening.
John at Patmos
In the last book of the bible John the apostle, states that he was in
the isle of Patmos, and could speak of the brotherhood of the
kingdom of Christ that he shared with his readers. As “partaker with
you in tribulation and kingdom” John proclaimed that Jesus has his
Kingdom among the believers and that he will come to reign on
earth.
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Rev 1:5-7 and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the
firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. Unto
him that loveth us, and loosed us from our sins by his blood; and
he made us to be a kingdom, to be priests unto his God and Father;
to him be the glory and the dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
Behold, he cometh with the clouds; and every eye shall see him,
and they, which pierced him; and all the tribes of the earth, shall
mourn over him. Even so, Amen.
Thus we see that the idea of the Kingdom of God is deeply
entwined with the gospel itself. It was the message proclaimed by
John and Jesus and his disciples, and continued to be the theme of
the apostles throughout the New Testament era. The kingdom of
God is central to the message of the Scriptures. This topic is one of
the pivotal themes of the whole Bible.
We still pray every day “Let your Kingdom come as it is in heaven”.
God reigns in the heavens, but the Malkuth is still not subject to the
King. We still await the fullness of the Kingdom here on earth thus
filling the fullness in the whole creation. Then this mortality will be
replaced with immortality and Jesus can say, “behold I make all
things new”
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Chapter Five
SPECTRUM OF MEANINGS OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD
Personal
In its narrowest sense, most evangelicals consider it in its sense of
personal salvation where it is assumed that there is a particular
place where people could enter if certain conditions are met. This
is usually called “going to heaven”. All interpretations then are
based on a personal individual level. The basis of this claim is the
statement of Jesus to Nicodemus
Joh 3:3 RV Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say
unto thee, except a man be born anew, he cannot see the kingdom
of God.
National
A slightly wider meaning is found in the Jewish aspiration of the
messiah’s coming wherein a period of glorious state of Israel will be
established with all prosperity.
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1Ch 16:15-24 Remember his covenant for ever, the word which he
commanded to a thousand generations; The covenant which he
made with Abraham, and his oath unto Isaac; And confirmed the
same unto Jacob for a statute, to Israel for an everlasting covenant:
Saying, Unto thee will I give the land of Canaan, the lot of your
inheritance: When ye were but a few men in number; yea, very
few, and sojourners in it; And they went about from nation to
nation, and from one kingdom to another people. He suffered no
man to do them wrong; yea, he reproved kings for their sakes;
Saying, Touch not mine anointed ones, and do my prophets no
harm. Sing unto the LORD, all the earth; shew forth his salvation
from day to day. Declare his glory among the nations, his
marvelous works among all the peoples.
This shifts the focus from the individual to the Nation, a particular
nation of Israel.
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Abraham as a family, and Jacob as Israel were called to be a
Kingdom of Priests so that they may declare the faithfulness of God
to all the nations of the world.
But though the Bible - which is essentially the history of Jewish
nation - emphasizes the revelation of God in their history, every
nation experiences this. People as families, tribes and nation are
called by God to be subject unto him. This then is a wider aspect of
the Kingdom of God. Today this calling is experienced by the
Church as a separated entity.
Rule of God on Earth
The concept widens as the Kingdom of God is extended to the
whole of earth where all will be ruled righteously.
Exo 19:5-7 Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and
keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me
from among all peoples: for all the earth is mine: and ye shall be
unto me a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation.
Psa 145:9-13 The LORD is good to all; and his tender mercies are
over all his works. All thy works shall give thanks unto thee, O
LORD; and thy saints shall bless thee. They shall speak of the
glory of thy kingdom, and talk of thy power; To make known to the
sons of men his mighty acts, and the glory of the majesty of his
kingdom. Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and thy dominion
endureth throughout all generations.
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This concept is seen in the Millenium rule of Jesus over the
earth
Mat 26:64 Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I
say unto you, Henceforth ye shall see the Son of man sitting at the
right hand of power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.
Dan 2:44 And in the days of those kings shall the God of heaven
set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed, nor shall the
sovereignty thereof be left to another people; but it shall break in
pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever..
Dan 7:13-14 I saw in the night visions, and, behold, there came
with the clouds of heaven one like unto a son of man, and he came
even to the ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.
And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that
all the peoples, nations, and languages should serve him: his
dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away,
and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.
Rev 20:4 And I saw high seats, and they were seated on them,
and the right of judging was given to them: and I saw the souls of
those who were put to death for the witness of Jesus, and for the
word of God, and those who did not give worship to the beast, or to
his image, and had not his mark on their brows or on their hands;
and they were living and ruling with Christ a thousand years.
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Broad meaning:
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God’s Bema reign over all creation of both Purusha and Prakriti.
This reign extends not only to earth but to all creations both in
heaven and earth and both organic and inorganic worlds.
Dan 7:27-28 And the kingdom and the dominion, and the
greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven, shall be given
to the people of the saints of the Most High: his kingdom is an
everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.
Rev 21: 1-8 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first
heaven and the first earth are passed away; and the sea is no
more. And I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of
heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.
And I heard a great voice out of the throne saying, Behold, the
tabernacle of God is with men, and he shall dwell with them, and
they shall be his peoples, and God himself shall be with them, and
be their God:
Isa 65:17 For see, I am making a new heaven and a new earth:
and the past things will be gone completely out of mind.
Rom 8:20-23 For the creation was subjected to vanity, not of its
own will, but by reason of him who subjected it, in hope that the
creation itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption
into the liberty of the glory of the children of God. For we know that
the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until
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now. And not only so, but ourselves also, who have the first-fruits of
the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for our
adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.
This is the ultimate redemption when even the material realm which
is now subject under the law of order to disorder – the second law
of thermodynamics – will be redeemed from this decay. Then on
everything will go on from order to order and from glory unto glory.
This will be possible only when the Sons of God come into their
own.
Kingdom's Coming depends on an attitude of Heart
This Kingdom and this salvation, which are the key words
of Jesus Christ's evangelization, are available to every
human being as grace and mercy. And yet at the same
time each individual must gain them by force—they belong
to the violent, says the Lord (Matthew 11:12; Luke 16:16),
through toil and suffering, through a life lived according to
the Gospel, through abnegation and the Cross, through the
spirit of the beatitudes. But above all each individual gains
them through a total interior renewal which the Gospel calls
metanoia; it is a radical conversion, a profound change of
mind and heart. Pope Paul VI On Evangelization in the
Modern World
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Three Interpretations in Time
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1. Realized Eschatology – already come.
(C. H. Dodd and John Dominic Crossan)
In this interpretation, it is claimed that the “Kingdom” was fully
manifest in the present teaching and actions of Jesus. Through his
words and deeds the “Kingdom” was brought into the present reality
of Palestine. So Jesus claims in Luke 11:20, and Luke 17:21 “the
kingdom of God has come to you” and “the kingdom of God is
within you”.
The manifesto of the Kingdom of God is given by Jesus in his first
rabinnic explanation of the Isiah’s prophecy.
The gospel of the Kingdom consisted of three aspects
Mat 4:23 And Jesus went about in all Galilee,
teaching in their synagogues, and
preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and
healing all manner of disease and all manner of sickness among
the people.
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Teaching
Preaching
Healing
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So when John the Baptist voiced his doubt about the Mesianic
anointing of Jesus, Jesus gave this reply
Luk 7:22-23 And he answered them, "Go and tell John what you
have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk,
lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the
poor have good news preached to them. And blessed is he who
takes no offense at me."
That much of the prophecy had been realized in Jesus’ life time.
Was that all to it? Why were those elements important?
Some who believe that Jesus failed in his mission to bring in the
expected Kingdom of God think so. But Jesus’ parables show a
much wider view of kingdom to come including an apocalyptic
coming of the Kingdom and a world to come. In the present aspect
of the Kingdom, until death is destroyed, the healing processes and
bringing health to life was the nearest approach to the Kingdom of
God. But that was only the beginning which is fulfilled and
completed when our mortal bodies are transformed and cosmos is
beyond decay and death. In the following verses Kingdom of God
is practically equated with Life and of course we are talking about
Life Abundant
Mark 9:43-48 And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off; it is
better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go to hell,
to the unquenchable fire….And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it
off; it is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be
thrown into hell…And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out; it is
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better for you to enter the Kingdom of God with one eye than with
two eyes to be thrown into hell, where their worm does not die, and
the fire is not quenched.
Matt 18:8-9 And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it
off and throw it away; it is better for you to enter life maimed or
lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal
fire. And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and throw it
away; it is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two
eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire.
Thus this healing process started here and now.
Healing included casting out demons as the following passages
indicate.
Matt 12:22,28 Then a demon-possessed man who was blind and
mute was brought to Jesus, and he healed him, so that the mute
man spoke and saw. All the crowds were stunned, and were
saying, "This man cannot be the Son of David, can he?" 28 But if I
cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the Kingdom of God
has come upon you.
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Luke 11:14,20 14 And he was casting out a demon, and it was
mute; when the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke; and the
crowds were amazed.
20 But if I cast out demons by the
finger of God, then the Kingdom of God has come upon you.
Luke 17:20-21 Being asked by the Pharisees when the Kingdom of
God was coming, he answered them, "The Kingdom of God is not
coming with signs to be observed (meta paratêrêseôs).; nor will
they say, 'Lo, here it is!' or 'There!' for behold, the Kingdom of God
is in the midst of you (entos humôn).”
2. Wholly futuristic kingdom – olam haba, "the world to come",
(Albert Schweitzer, Rudolf Bultmann, Norman Perrin and Johannes
Weiss)
In this approach Jesus is considered as an apocalyptic preacher
who wanted to bring about the Kingdom on earth. When he did not
see the end of the cosmic order coming Jesus embraced death as
a tool in which to provoke God into action. The wheel was given an
impetus by Jesus hurling himself into the wheel of history thus
making it start its rotation. Jesus thus started this process and it
was the duty of his disciples to give additional impetus to bring
about the final restoration of the cosmos.
This again sees only the part of the whole picture. Surely Jesus
embraced death. But was it unexpected? Certainly not. He knew it
was coming and it was part of the plan. There was a new
dimension of the Kindom which went beyond which lie in the
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resurrection of which he was certain. The plan of the ultimate
Kingdom of God goes beyond the decaying material history into the
glorious liberty of the children of God into the state when the whole
cosmos changes into a state where everything goes from glory to
glory instead of decay and death. Thus not only that the Kingdom
is here and now working in the hearts of those who have accepted
Jesus, it is in the making evolving into a glorious state for all
creation. Hence the great commission was to be proclaimed to “all
creation” not just Israel or even mankind.
3. "inaugurated eschatology" (N.T. Wright and G.R. Beasley-
Murray )
In this interpretation, the Kingdom is a present reality and also a
future manifestation. The Kingdom is in a process of “in-breaking”
into the present and will be fully realized in the future
It is previsioned in Jeremiah as a new covenant written in the hearts
of men (Jer. 31:31-34).
The future fulfillment is evidenced in the visible descent of Christ
through the clouds, comparable to the account in the first chapter of
Acts of his ascension into heaven (Acts 1:6-11).
"the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven" (Matt. 24:30),
Jesus also gave vivid accounts of the final days as the "wars and
rumors of wars" when ‘’nation will rise against nation, and kingdom
against kingdom" and other forms of evil and turmoil will give
warning that the end is near
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(Matt. 24:1-35; Mark 13:1-31; Luke 21:5-36).
“Paul speaks several times of "inheriting the kingdom of God" as a
future experience (1 Corinthians 6:9, 10; 15:50; Galatians 5:21; cf.
Ephesians 5:5), and otherwise indicates by his language that he
thinks of it as realized only at the end of the age (1 Thessalonians
2:12; 2 Thessalonians 1:5; Colossians 4:11; cf. 2 Timothy 4:1, 18).
When Paul wants to focus on the present manifestation of the
kingdom, he tends either to introduce the term "justice" or
"righteousness" along with "kingdom" (Romans 14:17) or in place of
it (Romans 1:17; for the close association of the kingdom and the
justice of God, see Matthew 6:33), or (alternatively) to connect the
kingdom with Jesus Christ rather than God the Father (Colossians
1:13).” J. Ramsey Michaels, "The Kingdom of God and the
Historical Jesus," chapter 8 of The Kingdom of God in 20th-Century
Interpretation, edited by Wendell Willis [Hendrickson, 1987], page
112)
Scofield summarises three aspects of the Kingdom of Heaven as
found in Mathew’s gospel.
“The kingdom of heaven has three aspects in Matthew:
(a) "at hand" from the beginning of the ministry of John the Baptist
(Mat 3:2) to the virtual rejection of the King, and the announcement
of the new brotherhood (Mat 12:46-50).
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(b) in seven "mysteries of the kingdom of heaven," to be fulfilled
during the present age (Mat 13:1-52) to which are to be added the
parables of the kingdom of heaven which were spoken after those
of Mt. 13, and which have to do with the sphere of Christian
profession during this age. It is here and now howbeit as a seed
growing.
(c) the prophetic aspect -- the kingdom to be set up after the
return of the King in glory. (Mat 24:29-25); (Mat 24:46); (Luk 19:12-
19); (Act 15:14-17).
Thus, the general picture painted of the Kingdom of God is that it is
culminated at the end of human history while in the interim period
the subjects of the Kingdom live in an interim ethics with the
dominion in their hearts. The subjects are born into the Kingdom in
a new birth so that they became citizens of the Kingdom by birth.
Mathew does not consider that the citizenship can be obtained by
any other means.
The book of Revelation gives the clear picture of hoe Christ will
reign on this earth for a thousand years, after which there will be a
great last battle and victory at Armageddon
The point here is that the fact that Jesus did not complete the
realization of His Kingdom in his first appearance and certainly
planned this process and culmination in a second coming was not
accidental.
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Thus for the Greeks, the Romans and the Indians the divine and the
heavenly realm were totally distinct and separate from the earthly
realm. Divine never entered the Terrestrial but controlled it from
above with an iron rod. But the experience of the disciples with the
person of Jesus Christ changed it all. They saw an incarnational
God – a God who came into the world and put on a human face and
lived among man laying down his divinity; an immanent God still
remaining transcendent. This led to the description of the Kingdom
as something among man and the realization of Kingdom of God on
earth something to be expected soon by Mark and Luke (e.g., Mk.
1:15, Lk. 10:9-11). Luke however, also described the Kingdom as
something within each one of us (Lk. 17:21). In contrast, John
described Jesus’ kingdom as something not of this world and is yet
to come.
Combining we can look at it as Three Parts of the Kingdom
advent
Inauguration of the Kingdom: Matt. 2:2; 4:23; 9:35; 27:11; Mark
15:2; Luke 16:16; 23:3; John 18:37
Development of the Kingdom from the seed: Matt. 13; Matt. 24:14;
Rom. 14:16-17; 1 Cor. 4:19-20; Col. 4:11
Consummation: 1 Cor. 15:50-58; Rev. 11:5
These are associated with the three comings of the Messiah.
The Incarnational Christ inaugurated the Kingdom and offered the
Kingdom citizenship to those who will receive it. This phase ended
with the cross and resurrection. When he left the earth the seed
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was left to grow until the initial the crop was gathered at the Rapture
when the first batch of the citizens of the Kingdom were called out
of the earth. In the consequent period a temporary Kingdom will be
established on the earth during the coming for the rest of mankind
which is usually termed as the Second coming. After a “Thousand
years of reign” the next filtration and addition to citizens are made at
the “White Throne”.
Within the theological tradition of the Eastern Churches the
Kingdom of God is the future of all mankind and the created world,
in that God will be in direct communion with the cosmos.
Islamic concept of the Kingdom of God
In the Islamic idea the relation between God and his creation is one
of Master and slave. Thus total submission to the authority of God
is the ultimate end of the cosmos. It is an absolute dominion as the
dictator rules over his people. He is mecifult and kind, but it is still
his personal world. Submit or be punished. Kingdom of God
constitutes a caliphate/Imamate, a geographical region unified
under the faith of Islam, and Matthew 13:31-33 has been suggested
by Islamic scholars to be in fact referring to a caliphate which will be
spread across three continents. According to mainstream Islamic
beliefs, the Second Coming of Jesus and the arrival of the Mahdi
will usher in this ideal caliphate/Imamate, which will put an end to
the "tyranny of the Antichrist", and this reign will ensure tranquility
and peace for the world.
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In a more spiritual interpretation and ultimate level this is attained
only after the Day of Judgment, when Allah judges all mankind
based on their deeds, one either goes to hell or to heaven; the latter
being the Eternal Kingdom.
The Seventh-day Adventists
The Seventh-day Adventist Church accepts the doctrine of the
Kingdom of God dividing it into two phases. These are, the
Kingdom of Grace which was established immediately after Adam
and Eve sinned, and the Kingdom of Glory which will be fully
established when Christ returns to earth for the second time.
Catholic interpretations
The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) teaches that the
coming Reign of God will be a kingdom of love, peace, and justice
(CCC 2046). Justice is defined as a virtue whereby one respects
the rights of all persons, living in harmony and equity with all (CCC
1807). The Kingdom of God began with Christ's death and
Resurrection and must be further extended by Christians until it has
been brought into perfection by Christ at the end of time (CCC 782,
2816). The Christian does this by living the way Christ lived, by
thinking the way Christ thought (CCC 2046) and by promoting
peace and justice (CCC 2820). This can be accomplished by
discerning how the Holy Spirit (God) is calling one to act in the
concrete circumstances of one's life (CCC 2820). Christians must
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also pray, asking God for what is necessary to cooperate with the
coming of His Kingdom (CCC 2632). Jesus gathered disciples to be
the seed and the beginning of God's Reign on earth, and Jesus
sent the Holy Spirit to guide them (CCC 541, 764). Jesus continues
to call all people to come together around him (CCC 542) and to
spread His Kingdom across the entire world (CCC 863). However,
the ultimate triumph of Christ's Kingdom will not come about until
Christ's return to earth at the end of time (CCC 671). During Christ's
second coming, he will judge the living and the dead. Only those
who are judged to be righteous and just will reign with Christ forever
(CCC 1042, 1060). Christ's second coming will also mark the
absolute defeat of all evil powers, including Satan (CCC 550, 671).
Until then, the coming of the Kingdom will continue to be attacked
by evil powers as Christians wait with hope for the second coming
of their Savior (CCC 671, 680). This is why Christians pray to
hasten Christ's return by saying to him "Marana tha!" which means
"Come, Lord Jesus!" (CCC 671, 2817).
According to Fr. William Barry, S.J., we can understand the
Kingdom of God as God's intention for the universe. God has
revealed that His intention for our world is that all humans live as
brothers and sisters, as sons and daughters of God (Is 2:2-5, Is
11:6-9, Is 40:4-5, Eph 1:3, 9-10). Our thoughts and actions can
either be in tune with God's intention or not. Only by being in tune
with God's intention will we ever know true fulfillment or happiness
in this life. Prayer, discernment and knowledge of God's revealed
Word are needed to discover how one can be in tune with God's
intention.
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According to Fr. Daniel J. Harrington, S.J., the Kingdom of God
primarily refers to the era when Christ comes again to bring the final
establishment of God’s rule over all creation, which will include a
final judgment where the righteous are rewarded and the wicked
are punished. The concept of the Kingdom of God offers the goal
for Christian life: those who follow the example and teachings of
Jesus will be vindicated when the Kingdom of God comes and will
reign with Christ forever.
Pope Benedict XVI in his book Jesus of Nazareth, says there are
"three dimensions" to the Church Fathers' interpretation of term
Kingdom of God. The first, which comes from Origen, is that Jesus
is himself the Kingdom in person. The second "sees man's
interioriry as the essential location of the Kingdom". This second
dimension also comes from Origen. "The third dimension of the
interpretation of the Kingdom of God we could call the
ecclesiastical: the Kingdom of God and the Church are related in
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different ways and brought into more or less close proximity". That
is to say that the Church is the Kingdom of God.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints considers the
church itself as the Kingdom of God on the earth. However, this is
limited to a spiritual or ecclesiastical kingdom until the Millennium
when Christ will also establish a political Kingdom of God. This will
have worldwide political jurisdiction when the Lord has made "a full
end of all nations" (Doctrine & Covenants 87: 6). However, Latterday
Saints believe that this theocratic "kingdom" will in fact be
quasi-republican in organization, and will be freely chosen by the
survivors of the millennial judgments rather than being imposed
upon an unwilling populace.
Jehovah's Witnesses
Jehovah's Witnesses extend the idea of the Kingdom of God to
more than just a state of mind or heart. The belief is that the
Kingdom is a government headed by Jesus Christ as King, ruling in
heaven since 1914. Jehovah's Witnesses come to the year 1914 by
two lines of reasoning: Bible chronology dealing with the end of the
Times of the Gentiles and observed world conditions. The miracles
and preaching of the Kingdom that Jesus carried out while on earth
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is a work that gave hope, illustrated the benefits the Kingdom would
bring, and urged efforts to gain God's favor. Jehovah's Witnesses
try to imitate that preaching work in their door-to-door work by
highlighting the Kingdom of God. In fact, the full name of the
Watchtower is "The Watchtower Announcing Jehovah's Kingdom."
In short, the Kingdom is the means through which God sanctifies
His name and vindicates His sovereignty and accomplishes His will
through Christ, and restores conditions on earth to those similar in
the Garden of Eden.
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Christadelphians
The Christadelphians
The name 'Christadelphian' is compounded of two Greek words:
'christos' and 'adelphoi' and means 'brethren in Christ'. The
Christadelphians are a group of people associated together by a
common belief in 'the things concerning the kingdom of God and
the name of Jesus Christ' (Acts 8v12). Christadelphians believe in
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an end time political kingdom. This viewpoint says that in the last
days Christ will return to rescue Israel (the nation), judge all who
are responsible to God's judgment, and make an immortal
administration for the Kingdom of God re-established on earth. It
will be based in Jerusalem, and will provide the faithful of all
generations with the land promised to them because they are heirs
of the land of the middle East, with Abraham. The Kingdom will
grow to rule over all other nations, with Jesus as the King and with
his administration (immortal saints) ruling over the nations with him.
Those ruled over will firstly be the Jews who are alive then
(although mortal) and the survivors of all other nations (also mortal).
During that time, lifespans of mortals will be greatly increased, and
justice will be carefully maintained. Thus the world will be filled with
peace and the knowledge of God.
” One planet
What a good idea — form one planet! This of course is God’s plan
for the earth, to unite all people together. It will be a time to throw
away passports, forget visa requirements, and abolish immigration
policy. Sometimes in life we can lose track of this amazing promise
of unity. Let’s consider the words David recorded in one of his
Psalms:
"All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the
LORD, and all the families of the nations shall worship
before you..." (Psa 22:27).
No geographic area or nationality is to be excluded from the
Kingdom of God. Jesus has ransomed people for God from
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every tribe, language, people, and nation (Rev 5:9). Let’s not
forget that all these nationalities came from just one man. From
one man the Almighty made every nation of men (Acts 17:26).
It is God’s intention "to bring all things in heaven and on earth
together under one head, even Christ" (Eph 1:10; cp Gen 1:26-28;
Psa 8:6).” Jonathan Fry (Melbourne Dandenong, Australia)
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Chapter Six
THE PLAN OF REDEMPTION THROUGH CHRIST
So the clear plan of redemption was these 6 stages
1. The Old Testament Messianic prophecy and expectation,
2. The inauguration of the Kingdom of God by Christ in his first
coming ending in the resurrection (the planting of the seed of
immortality).
The Manifesto of Christ.
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to
preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me
to proclaim release to the captives and
recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord."
(Luk 4:18-19)
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3. Preaching of the Kingdom of God to all creation starting with the
Church as its seed
Mar 16:15-18 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and
preach the gospel to the whole creation. He that believeth and is
baptized shall be saved; but he that disbelieveth shall be
condemned. And these signs shall accompany them that believe:
in my name shall they cast out demons; they shall speak with new
tongues; they shall take up serpents, and if they drink any deadly
thing, it shall in no wise hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick,
and they shall recover.
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Philippians 3:20 "For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we
also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will
transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious
body...."
4. Rapture of the Church which seperated a group of redeemed
culminating in the union of Church with Christ.
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5. The visible coming of Christ with the redeemed and the start of
millenium on earth.
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6. The White Throne and further seperation of the righteous and the
unrighteous
Now comes a period for which we are not given any prophetic
understanding. But the final product is clearly defined though
the full process is not.
3. The eventual redemption of whole cosmos and the creation
of the New Heaven and the New Earth.
1 Cor. 15.20-28 But Christ has in fact been raised from the
dead, the first-fruits of all who have fallen asleep. Death came
through one man and in the same way the resurrection of the
dead has come through one man. Just as all men die in Adam,
so all men will be brought to life in Christ; but all of them in
their proper order. Christ as the first-fruits and then, after the
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coming of Christ, those who belong to him. After that will come
the end, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father,
having done away with every sovereignty, authority and power.
For he must be king until he has put all his enemies under feet
and the last of the enemies to be destroyed is death, for
everything is to be put under his feet. Though when it is said
that everything is subjected, this clearly cannot include the One
who subjected everything to him. And when everything is
subjected to him, then the Son himself will be subject in his turn
to the One who subjected all things to him. so that God may be
all in all.
Eph 1.10-11 His purpose...that he would bring everything together
under Christ, as head, everything in the heavens and everything
on earth
Col. 1.18-20 He is the image of the unseen God and he is the firstborn
of all creation, for in him were created all things in heaven and
on earth: everything visible and everything invisible, Thrones,
Dominations, Sovereignties, Powers-all things were created through
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him and for him.... God wanted all perfection to be found in him and
all things to be reconciled through him and for him, everything in
heaven, and everything on earth, when he made peace by his
death on the cross.
Revelation 21:1 "And I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the
first heaven and the first earth had PASSED AWAY. Also there was
no more sea."
Revelation 21:3-5 And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying,
"Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with
them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be with
them and be their God.
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And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be
no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying; and there shall be no more
pain, for the former things have passed away."
Then He who sat on the throne said, "Behold, I make all things
new."
4. Then comes the end
1Co 15:24-28 Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom
to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority
and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies
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under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. For God
has put all things in subjection under his feet." But when it says, "All
things are put in subjection under him," it is plain that he is excepted
who put all things under him.
When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also
be subjected to him who put all things under him, that God may be
everything to every one.
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Chapter Seven
THE PRESENT HOPE
The Present Aspect While We Wait for the Hope
We are asked to create a Kingdom Church with changed state of
heart or mind (metanoia) within Christians (see Luke 17:20-21),
emphasizing the spiritual nature of His Kingdom by saying, "The
Kingdom of Heaven is within (or among) you."
We still have the power of resurrection within us for these signs and
miracles
• in healing diseases,
• driving out demons,
• teaching a new ethic for living, and
• offering a new hope in God to the poor,
• is understood to be a demonstration of that Kingdom in
action.
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The heavenly King reigns in His people on earth now
Galatians 2:20 "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I
who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the
flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave
Himself for me."
Luke 17:20"For indeed, the kingdom of God is 'within you."
Who will or will not enter the Kingdom of God?
1 Corinthians 6:9-11 "Do you not know that the unrighteous will not
inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither
fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor
sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers,
nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were
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some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but
you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of
our God."
Ephesians 5:5-7 "...no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous
man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of
Christ and God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for
because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of
disobedience. Therefore do not be partakers with them."
Galatians 5:19-21 "...the works of the flesh are evident, which are:
adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery,
hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish
ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness,
revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also
told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not
inherit the kingdom of God.“
This entry into the Kingdom of God is not based on the law, not
based on the obedience and righteousness of the person, but is
based only on the love and mercy of God which he offers to all. It is
not that there is no need of righteousness and obedience, but that
these should proceed as a result of being united in Christ as one
body.
Matthew 5:19-20 "I say to you, that unless your righteousness
exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by
no means enter the kingdom of heaven."
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Romans 14:16 "Therefore do not let your good be spoken of as evil;
for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness
and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit."
2 Corinthians 6:14-18 Therefore 'Come out from among them and
be separate,' says the Lord. 'Do not touch what is unclean, and I will
receive you. I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and
daughters,' says the Lord Almighty."
The result of this offer and its submissive free acceptance will result
in the transformation of the believer.
Romans 12:2 "...do not be conformed to this world, but be
transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what
is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God."
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Chapter Eight
THE GROWTH OF THE KINGDOM ON EARTH
In the Kingdom Parables Mathew 13, we are given a detailed
description of the growth of the Kingdom of God on the earth.
There are seven parables which Jesus proclaimed as those which
contain the process.
Mat 13:11 And he answered them, "To you it has been given to
know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has
not been given.”
1. The Parable of the sower
The first parable describes the dispersion of the mission and the
proclamation of the gospel to all parts of the earth. The principal
sowers of the seed were indeed the apostles who were with Jesus
along with the elect apostle Paul. They went to all the world and
proclaimed the gospel. Here is the list
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1. Peter: Jerusalem, died in Rome.
2. Andrew: modern day Greece, Balkans, Russia and possibly
parts of Poland
3. James, son of Zebedee: Samaria and Judea and traveled as far
as the shores of Spain.
4. John: Asia Minor, Greece and continued his brother's work in
Samaria
5. Philip: Asian Minor and Upper Asian regions
6. Bartholomew: regions of Mesopotamia, the Black sea area,
Egypt and Northern India.
7. Matthew: Parthia (northern Iran) and Ethopia
8. Thomas: preached in Parthia and came to India in AD 52. He
preached throughout India
9. James, son of Alphaeus: first Christian bishop of Jerusalem
10. Simon the Zealot: throughout Africa especially Mauritania,
Persia, Samaria and then further into Europe as far as Britain.
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11. Judas (not Iscariot): modern day Iran and Syria along with
Apostle Simon
12. Matthias: replaced Judas Iscariot subsequent to his suicide:
preached close to 30 years in Ethiopia, Egypt, Cappadocia (Turkey)
and Judea
13. Paul: the Architect and the Builder of the Church: Greek and
Roman Empire.
2. The Parable of the Tares (The rise of heresy)
Soon after the sowing of the gospel of the Kingdom, heresies began
to appear as a result of syncretism with philosophies and religions
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of each country. Gnostics of Syria were the main cause of these
heretic movements which tried to remove Jesus as Incarnate God
and Redeemer. In India this appeared as Hinduism.
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3. The Parable of the Mustard Seed that became a tree.
(Institutional Churches)
The churches in all the places grew up into institutions of large
sizes where selfish people began to take control of them. However
within these Institutional Churches, the faithful remained loyal under
the shade of the Church. Even though Church is the body of
believers, this institutionalization led to an understanding that
Church is the institution and its rituals and symbolisms. This
confusion remains even today as more are more institutional
churches are being formed.
4. The Parable of the Leaven
The rise of various leavens within the gospel is being introduced.
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5. The Parable of the Treasure Hidden in the Field
In spite of the wrong doctrines and emphasis on rituals and
practices, the believers find the hidden treasure.
6. The Parable of the pearl of great price.
Those who find the incarnate Jesus, the Son of God who believes
in heart that Jesus is Lord and confess Jesus with their mouth are
saved.
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7. The Parable of the Dragnet (Filtering process - Rapture)
The last parable of the Kingdom ends abruptly with impeding
separation of the believing and the unbelieving as the step into the
Kingdom. Those who are transformed are joined together into the
body of Christ and are united with him.
The parables do not give any further insight into the ultimate
process of redemption. This is only because the gospel is for now
and here. This is the day of Grace. You are required to decide
now. You don’t need to know the whole plan of God.
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Chapter Nine
THE KINGDOM OF GOD
The concept of the Kingdom of God is best understood only when
we understand the unity of God and the creation. Creation cannot in
any way exist apart from and outside of God. As long as we
distinguish the creator and creation as two distinct separate entities
we miss the inner core of the Kingdom. In fact it is this false
understanding that caused the fall of creation. In actuality since
there is nothing outside of God to start with, all the creation is within
God and we form part of the God himself. As I have used the
Kabalistic model of the cosmos, here I would like to use the Indian
model of the cosmos which is celebrated as Jagnath – the Lord of
the Universe
This figure of Jagnath, which is celebrated as the Lord of the
Universe, is really an epitome of the theology, which is essentially
the theology of Eastern Churches and that of the Hebrew Kabala.
This highly expressive form was developed in India soon after the
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advent of Thomas.
summarized as follows:
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The description of the figure can be
The Jagnath symbol is an excellent representation of the Eastern
Theology
In the beginning, God alone existed. We cannot attribute any
quality to God, because qualities are relative. Without the existence
of another, we cannot define qualities. This God – the beginning -
is referred to as Nirguna Brahman (God without Qualities). This is
represented as the darkness. God who resides in darkness
symbolized the God who cannot be known. “Jehovah hath said that
he would dwell in the thick darkness” (1 King 8:12) “Jehovah spake
unto all your assembly in the mount out of the midst of the fire, of
the cloud, and of the thick darkness, with a great voice” (Deu. 5:22)
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Then the fact remains that we have a creation and movement.
Therefore, this Nirguna Brahman put on a variation within himself.
It is as though he differentiated himself to parts thus creating God
with Properties and Qualities.
The Nirguna Brahman became
conscious of His own existence, This God is known as Saguna
Brahman (God with Properties). Properties do not exist except in
relation.
This would imply plurality of Godhead, which in
Christianity is defined in the Triune God. God is a person not a
force. This is because creation needs a purposeful act. The two
open eyes represent this waking up process. This God has
expressed himself and hence can be known through creation and in
intimacy.
Out of the mouth of this Jagnath proceeds the AUM – the Word.
Thus we have the trinity which in Christian Theology is referred to
as Father, Holy Spirit and the Word.
The Aum is a person as its vibrations takes the form of a man - a
person and rises to create. According to the Kaballistic description,
God created a space within himself by contracting and then began
to create the cosmos in Him. It is this person Om that created the
universe with all its variations – material and immaterial.
Joh 1:1-5 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with
God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God;
all things were made through him, and without him was not anything
made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of
men.
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The whole creation is in a way Word becoming flesh. The whole
cosmos forms the body of God. “For in him we live, and move, and
have our being”. This concept explains the immanence and
transcendence of God. Church as the body of Christ is just an
extension of this Jagnath concept.
It is evident that this sophisticated concept of God which did not
exist prior to Christian era appeared in crystallized form in powerful
concrete expression could not have occurred except through
Thomas.
The Kingdom therefore is a unity with diverse parts. The parts
contains sentient beings as well as organic and inorganic parts
each dependent on the others. The fall is when the individual
sentient develops and ego and considers himself independent of
others and exploits the others for personal ends. The central core
of Love that gives without expecting anything return (Agape) gave
rise to self centeredness and the feeling, I am separate from the
rest of the universe and I take care of myself even at the cost of the
others is the fall of the children of God. This causes disintegration
and eventually death. This is what we call sin. This is what causes
decay and death.
Rom 5:12 Therefore as sin came into the world through one man
and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all
men sinned—
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Thus the redemption is simply the reconciliation of God and the
fallen Creation, which includes all Purusha (Persons) and Prakriti
(Nature both organic and inorganic). Bringing the realization that
we are indeed part of each other and any selfish act simply destroy
the proponent and also all the rest; and even wounds the creator.
It brings decay and death.
2Co 5:17 -20 Therefore, if any one is in Christ, he is a new
creation; the old has passed away, behold, the new has come. All
this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and
gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was
reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses
against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.
So we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through
us. We beseech you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
This idea of unity is represented in Kaballah as the worlds within
worlds. Beyond and above all these four worlds, the unknowable
Ein, Ein Sof and Ein Sof Aur remains – that which are self existent
beyond time and space and even dimensions. They transcends all
bounds.
So Jesus explains this as follows in his High Priestly Prayer:
John 17:21-23 “May they all be one, Father, may they be one in us,
as you are in me, and I am in you, so that the world may believe
that it was you who sent me. I have given them the glory which you
gave to me, that they may be one as we are one. With me in them
and you in me, may they be so completely one that the world will
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realise that it was you who sent me, and that I have loved them as
much as you loved me.”
healing.
This is represented in concept of Adam
Kadamon, the Primeval Man Christ. The
Hebrew letters of Yod, He, Vau, He of Yhvh
forms the figure of a Person. Within the
Premeaval Man Christ is created the worlds
within the worlds. The Christ fills all and in all.
When there is a wound within, it is the blood of
Christ alone that can heal. This is the process of
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This was achieved in our world through the cross and in placing the
power of rebirth through the placement of Holy Spirit and bringing
into subjection the human ego unto the will of Christ. This is not
done overnight and is a process since at no time human free will is
taken away.
Thus the Kingdom of God now is the redemptive presence of
God.
Kingdom is made anew and whole, through the union of free human
beings, and God, It is the fullest manifestation of the transcendent
holiness and incarnate wholeness of Being. In the orthodox
theology this process is called “theosis”: (theiosis, theopoiesis,
theōsis; Θεωσις, meaning divinization, or deification, or making
divine) meaning transforming into the likeness of Jesus who is the
ultimate image of humanity. The Kingdom is already here, yet is still
to come, and it will come by God’s grace with the free cooperation
of the human race. The process of transforming the fallen being
into the likeness of the Son is called theosis
“Let us applaud and give thanks that we have become not only
Christians but Christ himself. Do you understand, my brothers, the
grace that God our head has given us? Be filled with wonder and
joy—we have become veritable Christs!” —St. Augustine of Hippo
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Theosis, becoming fully functioning body of God
The perfecting of the cosmos in its full function as part of God
himself or the perfecting of God’s body, will require the return of the
fallen mankind and in fact all fallen creation to its pristine form in
line with God’s purposes.
I Cor.12.27 Now you together are Christ's body; but each of you is a
different part of it.
The Allegory of the Body and the Cells
The concept that the Church is the Body of Christ and that the
whole Cosmos is the Body of God has deep implication which goes
on to define clearly what the Kingdom of God is like.
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In this portrayal of the function of cells within the body we have the
picture of the Kingdom of God with its altruistic pattern in contrast
to the picture of the fallen cosmos.
Except for germs like viruses and bacteria, just about every
other living thing on Earth is made of cells. This is why cells
are called the building blocks of life. Most forms of life are
made of many cells. It is estimated that the average human
adult body contains about 10 trillion cells . Individual cell is
invisible unless viewed through a microscope. Not all cells are
alike. They differ in size, shape and function Bone cells differ
rom blood cells and nerve cells differ from muscle cells. Each
one is designed to do a different job. Red blood cells carry
oxygen throughout the body. Nerve cells carry electrical
signals to and from our brains to muscles all over our bodies.
Bone cells, which are very rigid, form the skeleton that gives
our bodies shape. Muscle cells contract to move these bones
to help us get around. Stomach cells secrete an acid to digest
our food. Special cells in our intestines absorb nutrients from
the food we eat. And no matter what they do, many of these
cells change food into energy to keep our bodies working.
Cells are packed tightly together. They combine to form
tissues, like skin and muscle. Tissues combine to form
organs. Muscle cells combine to form muscle tissues. Muscle
tissues combine to form organs like your heart. Organs
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cooperate (work together) to keep us alive. All human body
cells are covered by a membrane. This layer holds the
contents of the cell in just like the sides of a container. The
membrane lets good things, like nutrients, into the cell. It also
keeps bad things, like germs and bacteria, out.
You can see how these reflects the function of individual within a
socieity and then societies function within the life of the Earth and
so on.
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The nucleus is a highly specialized organelle that serves as the
information and administrative center of the cell. This organelle has
two major functions. It stores the cell's hereditary material, or DNA,
and it coordinates the cell's activities, which include intermediary
metabolism, growth, protein synthesis, and reproduction (cell
division).
Only the cells of advanced organisms, known as eukaryotes, have
a nucleus. Generally there is only one nucleus per cell, but there
are exceptions such as slime molds and the Siphonales group of
algae. Simpler one-celled organisms (prokaryotes), like the
bacteria and cyanobacteria, don't have a nucleus. In these
organisms, all the cell's information and administrative functions are
dispersed throughout the cytoplasm
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In his book From Chaos to Harmony The Solution to the Global
Crisis According to the Wisdom of Kabbalah,
Rav Michael
Laitman, explains the concept beautifully and I quote it extensively
since it cannot be put any better way.
“HARMONY AMONG CELLS IN A LIVING ORGANISM
“Within each multi-cellular organism is an intriguing phenomenon. If
we examine each cell as a separate unit, we will see that it
functions egoistically, thinking only of itself. However, when we
examine it as a part of a system, the cell seems to take only the
minimum required for its own sustenance, aiming the bulk of its
activity toward the body. It behaves like an altruist, “thinks” only of
the body’s wellbeing, and acts accordingly.
“There must be complete harmony among all the cells in a body.
The nucleus of each cell contains the genetic code that
encompasses all the body’s information. Theoretically, this is all the
information needed to recreate the whole body. Each cell in the
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body must be aware of the whole body. It must know what the body
needs and what it can do for it. Were this not so, the body would not
persist. A cell in a body exists in a state of “consideration” for the
body as a whole. All the cell’s actions, the beginning and the end of
its division, specification of cells, and movement toward a certain
location in the body, unfold in congruence with the body’s needs.
“CONNECTEDNESS CREATES LIFE IN A NEW DEGREE
“Even though all the cells in our bodies contain identical genetic
information, each cell puts a different part of that information into
action, depending on its place and functionality in the body. When
the embryo is just beginning to evolve, all its cells are identical. But
as the embryo evolves, the cells differentiate, and each cell
acquires qualities of a specific kind.
“Thus, each cell has its own “mind” or “awareness,” but the altruistic
connectedness among cells enables them to create a new being, a
complete body whose mind and awareness belong to a higher
degree and are not present within this or that cell, but rather in the
bonding between them.
“AN EGOISTIC CELL IS A CANCEROUS CELL
“Healthy cells are restricted by a wide variety of rules and
limitations. However, cancerous cells have no regard at all for
restrictions. Cancer is a state where the body is consumed by its
own cells, which have embarked on uninhibited proliferation. While
multiplying, a cancer cell divides relentlessly, regardless of the
needs of its environment and irresponsive to the body’s commands.
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“Cancer cells destroy their environment, thus creating open spaces
for them to grow. They impel the neighboring blood vessels to grow
into the resulting tumor to nourish it, and thus subjugate the whole
body to themselves. In simple terms, cancer cells induce the death
of the body through acts of egoism. They operate in this manner
even though it does not bring them any benefit. Actually, the truth is
to the contrary, as the death of the body means the death of its
assassins, too. The manner in which cancerous cells take over the
host body leads them to their own demise. Thus, when egoism
nurtures itself, it leads everything to death, including itself. Egoistic
behavior and general inattentiveness to the needs of the whole
body lead them straight to doom.
“THE INDIVIDUAL VS. THE COLLECTIVE
In a healthy body, cells “relinquish” their own lives in favor of that of
the body, when necessary. When genetic errors occur in cells,
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which may turn them into cancerous cells, the cell activates a
mechanism that ends its life. The fear that it mit become cancerous
and jeopardize the entire body makes the cell give up its own life for
the life of the body. We can find a similar altruistic action, though
under different circumstances, in the way the cellular slime mold
(Dictyostelium mucoroides) lives. Under ideal conditions, the mold
lives in the form of separate cells that provide for their own food and
multiply independently. But when there is shortage of food, the cells
unite and create a multi-cellular body. While building this body,
some of the cells give up their own lives to promote the survival of
the other cells.”
Harmony Within Chaos - Ben McLeod
The egoistic Kingdom of this World has created a cosmos which is
covered with Cancer and it will eventually kill not only the host but
also the self. The only way out is provided through the cross, the
altruistic life in every form of life. We need to revert back to love
and think of the whole creation in order to save it. In fact Paul says
that
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Rom 8:5-24
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(5) For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the
things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set
their minds on the things of the Spirit. To set the mind on the flesh
is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the
mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to
God's law, indeed it cannot; and those who are in the flesh cannot
please God.
But you are not in the flesh, you are in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit
of God dwells in you. Any one who does not have the Spirit of
Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although your
bodies are dead because of sin, your spirits are alive because of
righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead
dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will give life
to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit which dwells in you.
So then, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according
to the flesh-- for if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if
by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body you will live.
For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you
did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you
have received the spirit of sonship. When we cry, "Abba! Father!" it
is the Spirit himself bearing witness with our spirit that we are
children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and fellow
heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may
also be glorified with him.
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God is incomprehensible in His essence. But God, who is love, allows us to know
Him through His divine energies, those actions whereby He reveals Himself to us
in creation, providence, and redemption. It is through the divine energies,
therefore, that we achieve union with God.
I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth
comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.
For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the
sons of God; for the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own
will but by the will of him who subjected it in hope; because the
creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain
the glorious liberty of the children of God.
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We know that the whole creation has been groaning in travail
together until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who
have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait for
adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we
were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for
what he sees?
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Jesus gave two figures to describe this relationship.
The first is the example of the Vine and the Branches.
John 15:5 I am the vine, you are the branches.
This idea of deification differs considerably from the Gnostic, Hindu
and New Age concept of Man realizing as God. The cosmos being
the creation of God and hence an extension of God, Man does not
partake of the unity in essence with the Triune God. There is a
clear difference between God who is transcendant and beyond
creation and God who is immanent in creation. God is immanent in
his creation to which he has given freedom of will as his children.
We are the branches and is distinct from the root. But as branches
we can produce the fruit expected of the branches – which is
possible only if the life giving spirit flows into the branches and
transform it.
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For this is why the gospel was preached even to the dead, that
though judged in the flesh like men, they might live in the Spirit like
God. —I Peter 4:6
The glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope
of glory. — Col. 1:27
The second figure is the marriage of man and wife where they
are united together into one body.
Eph. 5:31-32. . . the two will become one body. . . This mystery
applies to Christ and the Church.
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The representation of the being one in marriage goes far into the
creation when Adam was a unity including Man and Woman from
which a seperation was so as to create. This in fact is an image of
the creation of Cosmos itself by God the unity. As in the union of
Man and Wife they become one organism, so will be the union of
Created beings with the Creator Word. When Mankind (and all
sentient free will beings) join together into God we have the ultimate
consumation.
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Athanasius commented regarding the incarnation as
follows: “For the Son of God became man, that we
might become God.”
John 10:34-35 Jesus answered: Is it not written in your Law: I said,
you are gods? So the Law uses the word gods of those to whom
the word of God was addressed, and scripture cannot be rejected.
So C.S. Lewis in “A Grief Observed”
argues in thus: “ (God) said that we were
"gods" and He is going to make good His
words. If we let Him-for we can prevent
Him if we choose—He will make the
feeblest and filthiest of us into a god or
goddess, dazzling, radiant, immortal
creature, pulsating all through with such
energy and joy and wisdom and love as
we cannot now imagine, a bright stainless mirror which reflects
back to God perfectly (though, of course, on a smaller scale) His
own boundless power and delight and goodness. The process will
be long and in parts very painful; but that is what we are in for.”
“God said to this hairless monkey, "get on with it, become a god."”
Notice the g not G.
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“He has called men gods that are deified of His
Grace, not born of His Substance.” St. Augustine
"the Word became flesh and the Son of God became the Son of
Man: so that man, by entering into communion with the Word and
thus receiving divine sonship, might become a son of God" —St.
Irenaeus, Adv Haer III 19,1
“Souls wherein the Spirit dwells, illuminated by
the Spirit, themselves become spiritual, and send
forth their grace to others. Hence comes . . .
abiding in God, the being made like to God, and,
highest of all, the being made god.” —St. Basil the
Great, On the Spirit.
Confessor
“let us become the image of the one whole God,
bearing nothing earthly in ourselves, so that we may
consort with God and become gods, receiving from
God our existence as gods” —St. Maximus the
II Peter 1:3-4 He has given us all the things that we need for life and
for true devotion, bringing us to know God himself... through them
you will be able to share the divine nature.
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The Only-begotten Son of God, wanting us to be
partakers of his divinity, assumed our human
nature so that, having become man, he might
make men gods. —St. Thomas Aquinas
Ephesians 4:13 In this way we are all to come to unity in our faith
and in our knowledge of the Son of God, until we become the
perfect Man, fully mature with the fullness of Christ himself.
This concept of deification or the process of becoming part of
God’s body is staggering as C.S.Lewis writes in his book “The
Weight of Glory”:
“It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and
goddesses, to remember that the dullest and most uninteresting
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person you talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it
now, you would be strongly tempted to worship. . .”
Human-beings can become Sons of God! The process involved is
“You must be born again.”. Unless we're born again –through
resurrection we can't even see the Kingdom of God!
1Co 15:42-50 So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is
sown is perishable, what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in
dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in
power. It is sown a physical body, it is raised a spiritual body. If
there is a physical body, there is also a spiritual body. Thus it is
written, "The first man Adam became a living being"; the last Adam
became a life-giving spirit. But it is not the spiritual which is first but
the physical, and then the spiritual. The first man was from the
earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. As was the
man of dust, so are those who are of the dust; and as is the man of
heaven, so are those who are of heaven. Just as we have borne
the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the
man of heaven. I tell you this, brethren: flesh and blood cannot
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inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the
imperishable.
1Jn 3:2 Beloved, we are God's children now; it does not yet appear
what we shall be, but we know that when he appears we shall be
like him, for we shall see him as he is.
Php 3:20-21 But our commonwealth is in heaven, and from it we
await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will change our lowly
body to be like his glorious body, by the power which enables him
even to subject all things to himself.
The statement will make meaning only in the context of the world
within worlds. When all the fallen creatures aligns themselves to
the direction of the divine purposes, the whole cosmos will be
redeemed and brought back into its newness of life.
1Co 15:54-57 When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and
the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying
that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory." "O death, where
is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting?" The sting of death is
sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who
gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Theosis is not that man becomes in all essence God, but that every
part of the creation which form part of the body of God functions as
they are expected to in the process of maintaining the Kingdom.
Just as each part of the body is to function properly for good health,
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the whole four world Kingdom will ultimately work in unison as God
wanted his body to function with oneness of purpose – the perfect
will of God.
Eph 4:11-13 And his gifts were that some should be apostles,
some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to
equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of
Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the
knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure
of the stature of the fullness of Christ;
Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there
is freedom. And we, with our unveiled faces reflecting like mirrors
the brightness of the Lord, all grow brighter and brighter as we are
turned into the image that we reflect; this is the work of the Lord
who is Spirit. — 2 Cor. 3:17-18
I John 3:2 My dear people, we are already the children of God but
what we are to be in the future has not yet been revealed; all we
know is, that when it is revealed we shall be like him because we
shall see him as he really is.
But to all who did accept him he gave power to become children of
God, to all who believe in the name of him who was born not out of
human stock or urge of the flesh or will of man but of God himself.
— John, 1:12-13
Thus Kingdom of God is the realization of the whole sentient
creation as children of God. This in terrestial terms includes Man.
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But this concept is not a New Age idea. Here are some verses that
defines the process of theosis or the process of being in the image
of Jesus by growing in Christ. This is accomplished through the
every day trials and overcoming of temptations.
Rom. 8:15-17 “. . . the Spirit and our spirit bear united witness that
we are children of God. And if we are children we are heirs of God
and co-heirs with Christ, sharing his sufferings so as to share his
glory."
They (those who love him) are the ones he chose specially long
ago and intended to become true images of his Son, so that his Son
might be the eldest of many brothers. — Rom. 8:29
Gal. 4:7...if God has made you son, then he has made you heir.
Copy of the Kingdom under Test
During the period of the ministry of Christ he must have
emphasized this organic unity of all creation and the need for
mankind living as one organism that soon after the Great
Commission and the ascension we see the formation of such a
nuclear society of believers. They tried to create the Kingdom of
God in accordance with the principles taught by Jesus.
Act 4:32 -35 “Now the company of those who believed were of one
heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things which he
possessed was his own, but they had everything in common. And
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with great power the apostles gave their testimony to the
resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all.
There was not a needy person among them, for as many as
were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the
proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles' feet; and
distribution was made to each as any had need.”
The Principle of
“From each according to his ability
To each according to his need”
Was first established by the Jerusalem Christian Commune.
But the experiment failed miserably because of one family who
entered the community and acted against the principle - Anani'as
with his wife Sapphi'ra. This brought in immediate death for the
couple along with the community. The story still continues. The
story of the failure of communism in Russia proclaims the same
fact. Today there are several experimental communes all over the
world. In every case the problems include selfishness. Kingdom of
God cannot come unless sin is eradicated and that is a long
process involving new creation through resurrection power.
James the brother of Jesus reacted to this failure.
Jas 5:1-9 Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that
are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted and your garments
are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver have rusted, and their rust will
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be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have
laid up treasure for the last days. Behold, the wages of the laborers
who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out; and
the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of
hosts. You have lived on the earth in luxury and in pleasure; you
have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter.
You have
condemned, you have killed the righteous man; he does not resist
you.
Be patient, therefore, brethren, until the coming of the Lord.
Behold, the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being
patient over it until it receives the early and the late rain. You also
be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at
hand. Do not grumble, brethren, against one another, that you may
not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the doors.
“The deification or theosis of the creature will be realized in its
fullness only in the age to come, after the resurrection of the dead.
This deifying union has, nevertheless, to be fulfilled ever more and
more even in this present life, through the transformation of our
corruptible and depraved nature and by its adaptation to eternal
life.” (Vladimir Lossky, The Mystical Theology of the Eastern Church
p. 196, Crestwood, NY: St. Vladimir's Seminary Press, 1976 )
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Kibbutz Barkai in the Wadi Ara region
A kibbutz ‏(ץוביק)‏ is a collective community in Israel
that was traditionally based on agriculture. The
kibbutz is a form of communal living that combines
socialism and Zionism. Kibbutzim began as utopian
communities, but have gradually embraced a more
"scientific" Socialist approach. Today, farming has
been partly supplanted by other economic branches,
including industrial plants and high-tech enterprises.
Less than five percent of Israelis live on kibbutzim.
After the failure of the First Christian Commune, realizing the
presence of Selfishness and on going exploitation one by the other,
the Church as a living organism with independent families as a
viable solution came in.
The Kingdom is being formed in the
Church where the presence of sin is acknowledged.
John 14:20-24 "...you will know that I am in My Father, and you in
Me, and I in you. He who has My commandments and keeps them,
it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My
Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him. .. If anyone
loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and
We will come to him and make Our home with him. He who does
not love Me does not keep My words."
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John 15:4-6 "Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear
fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless
you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who
abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can
do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a
branch and is withered...."
John 3:3-6"...I say to you, 'unless one is born again, he cannot see
the kingdom of God.... Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is
born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.
That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the
Spirit is spirit."
This remaking of the Cosmos with all its freedom of will into one
organic unity functioning in perfection is the ultimate Kingdom of
God. It has already started in the hearts and minds of the people
who has accepted Christ as their Lord and Master and He will
transform and ultimately bring us all into that Kingdom. It needs
your free participation. That is the call of the Gospel. There will be
pruning, there will be pain. All these are part of the theosis
process.
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Chapter Ten
PRINCIPLES OF POWER IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD
diakonia
THE SERVANT KING
We always talk about God as the King
of Kings and the Lord of Lords. King of
Kings is a lofty title that has been used
by several monarchies (usually empires
in the informal sense of great powers) throughout history, and in
many cases the literal title meaning "King of Kings", i.e. Monarch
elevated above other royal rulers in a vassal, tributary or
protectorate position, especially in the case of Semitic languages, is
conventionally (usually inaccurately) rendered as Emperor. Titles of
this relative type have been in use from the most ancient times in
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Aryan. The rulers of Persia, at various times (under Zoroastrian as
well as Muslim dynasties), have been titled Shâhanshâh, the shah
of shahs
Whereas the most literal Sanskrit equivalent is
Rajadhiraja, such as Maharaja (literally Great King, also greatly
devaluated by title inflation) and Maharajadhiraja (Bahadur) 'Great
King of kings'. The titles Maharajadhiraja and Rajadhiraja were also
assumed by some great Kushan kings in the 1st and 2nd centuries
of AD, as was Devaputra or 'Son of God'. Effectively we associate
this concept with Power and Authority over the whole creatures so
that he can control and do whatever it pleases him.
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The Problem with the concept of Kingship and Power
However the picture presented by Jesus about authority and power
presents an opposite upside down view.
Who Is the Greatest? (Luke22:24-30)
Also a dispute arose among them as to which of them was
considered to be greatest.
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Jesus said to them, "The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and
those who exercise authority over them call themselves
Benefactors. But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest
among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like
the one who serves.
Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one
who serves.
You are those who have stood by me in my trials. And I confer on
you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me, so that
you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on
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thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. The greatest among
you will be your servant.
For whoever exalts himself will be
humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted."
Mat 23:11-12 He who is greatest among you shall be your servant;
whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles
himself will be exalted.
The Apostle John tells the rest of the story.
In response to the disciples' bickering Jesus takes off his outer
garment, takes a towel and a basin, kneels behind each of them,
and begins to wash their feet. He not only talks about being a
servant on this occasion, he acts it out before them as a living
parable they will never forget (John 13:4-17).
Joh 13:3-5 Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into
his hands, and that he had come from God and was going to God,
rose from supper, laid aside his garments, and girded himself with a
towel. Then he poured water into a basin, and began to wash the
disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which he was
girded.
Joh 13:12-17 When he had washed their feet, and taken his
garments, and resumed his place, he said to them, "Do you know
what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord; and you
are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed
your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have
given you an example, that you also should do as I have done to
you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his
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master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him. If you
know these things, blessed are you if you do them
The Upside down Kingdom
The soldier obeyed the centurion because he knew that he would
be punished if he disobeyed. The centurion had the coercive power
of the Roman Empire behind him. This is authority from above.
That power may be legal power, as is the case of the centurion. It
may be the power of a gun, or simply be bigger fists. When we think
of a king or a kingdom, we imagine a dictator imposing his will on a
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helpless populace, draining them of their resources to be used for
his own personal aggrandizement. Even if we picture him as a
benevolent despot, he is at best an efficient bureaucrat.
But when we speak of God and the concept of kingdom, we refer to
a completely different model.
Authority from above needs force.
In contrast, the Authority from below has no coercive force. Instead
it is based on two factors: Love and Freedom
God’s Handicap
In dealing with the cosmos and all the living beings in it God is
handicapped. But this handicap is self-imposed. God deliberately
takes upon himself this handicap because we are Sons of God.
Hence he gives all sentients in the cosmos free will. He will never
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force us into doing right , even when he knows that we are moving
in the wrong direction and will eventually kill us.
He conquers all through His Love whereby he dies himself for us
and gives us a way out. He still will not force us to take that road.
He is long suffering and waits the Father who waits for his prodigal
Son.
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Joh 15:12-13 This is my commandment, that ye love one another,
even as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this that a
man lay down his life for his friends.
"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved
you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that
you are my disciples, if you love one another." John 13:34-35 NIV
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Freedom and Service
All authority in the kingdom of God is based on freedom and
service. This seems like a mystery, but it makes the kingdom of
God unique.
Joh 12:24
Verily, verily, I say unto you, except a grain of wheat fall into the
earth and die, it abideth by itself alone; but if it die, it beareth much
fruit.
Php 2:1-11 So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any
incentive of love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and
sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the
same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from
selfishness or conceit, but in humility count others better than
yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but
also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves,
which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of
God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but
emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the
likeness of men. And being found in human form he humbled
himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross.
Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the
name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every
knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and
every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God
the Father.
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Jesus demonstrated how servant authority works.
He lived amongst the people and served them. Many responded to
his love by to become his disciples.
He had great authority over his disciples, but no one was forced to
obey him. They obeyed him because they loved him. Every disciple
was free to withdraw their submission at any time. Judas
demonstrated this freedom when he withdrew his submission to
Jesus and submitted to the Jewish leaders.
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“Come see his hands and his feet,
the scars that speak of sacrifice,
hands that flung stars into space,
to cruel nails surrendered.
This is our God, the Servant King,
He calls us now to follow Him
to bring our lives as a daily offering
of worship to the Servant King.” Graham Kendrick
In the Kingdom of God, people gain authority by serving.
Husbands gain authority in their family, by loving their wives.
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Elders have authority, because they serve the Christians in their
care.
Those with authority in the kingdom of God must serve others.
They must never use coercion to get their will done.
The greatest SERVANT in the cosmos is God.
This is the Kingdom where each cares for the other and they form a
family based on love and service giving themselves to each other.
God so loved the world HE GAVE
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The Gospel in the Dress
This teaching of the servanthood as authority is intentionally built
into the dress of the Priesthood. The dress of the Priest is the
dress of the servants in the middle east with its waist band in
readiness to serve.
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The dress of Bishops indicates Sacrifice of the blood and
Servanthood. Washed in the blood of the lamb gives its saffron
color. Safron clothes became of symbol of the sanyasins only after
the ministry of Jesus. The Brahmins even today wears the white.
Priestly dress of glory and authority is worn on top indicating the
origin of authority is in the servantbood.
The greatest is the one who serve
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"Love's Rule"
In essence, the Kingdom of God should be translated as "Love's
Domain," "Love's Dominion," or "Love's Rule" because the Kingdom
of God is where the God is. God is Love
The only definitions of God in the bible are:
God is Love and God is a Spirit and God is Light
1Jn 4:7-24 Beloved, let us love one another; for love is of God,
and he who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not
love does not know God; for God is love. In this the love of God
was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the
world, so that we might live through him.
In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent
his Son to be the expiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us,
we also ought to love one another. No man has ever seen God; if
we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in
us. By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he
has given us of his own Spirit. And we have seen and testify that
the Father has sent his Son as the Savior of the world. Whoever
confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he
in God. So we know and believe the love God has for us. God is
love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in
him.
1Jn 4:19 We love, because he first loved us. If any one says, "I
love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not
love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has
not seen.
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1Jn 4:21 And this commandment we have from him, that he who
loves God should love his brother also.
Joh 4:24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship
in spirit and truth.
1Jn 3:16 By this we know love, that THEY laid down THEIR life for
us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.
1Jn 1:5 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim
to you, that God is light and in him is no darkness at all.
Rom 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of
God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to
God, which is your spiritual service.
Receive the Kingdom and the Kingdom responsibilities that Jesus
would confer upon you. Become partakers in the redemptive
process of the cosmos
Behold I make all things new.
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Chapter Eleven
PRINCIPLES OF PROSPERITY IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD
The Principles of the Kingdom of God in terms of Prosperity and
Power are in direct opposition to the principles of this world. The
whole cosmos is considered as one unity and works in consonance
one part supporting the other. It is like a vast network where each
is linked to the other.
1. THE PRINCIPLE OF SOWING AND REAPING
One of the basic principles of the world created by God is the
Principle of Sowing and Reaping
The most direct exposition of this principle is found in 2 Corinthians.
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2 Cor 9:6 -7
Remember this:
Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly,
and
whoever sows generously will also reap generously.
Each man should give
what he has decided in his heart to give,
not reluctantly or under compulsion,
for God loves a cheerful giver
Paul is here talking about money and financial help to saints.
There is therefore no question of interpreting it as simply connected
with spiritual help only. Verse 8 probably is the best definition of
Prosperity in Biblical perspective.
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*That you may have enough of everything
*and in plenty
so that there is enough and more to provide in abundance for every
good work. God’s abundant blessing has a double purpose,
* to provide in abundance everything for his children
* to provide in abundance for every good work.
These are the two sides of the same coin of the Principle of Sowing
and Reaping. You sow to reap and reap to sow. So Paul continues:
2 Cor 9:9 As it is written:
"He has scattered abroad his gifts to the
poor; his righteousness endures forever."
[You have received, not because you
deserve it. But because God is merciful and
his righteousness is everlasting]
Before God expects you to sow, he provides
you with the seed necessary for the sowing.
He gives because he wants to receive back
thanksgiving.
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2 Cor 9:10-11
Now he who supplies seed to the sower
and bread for food
will also supply
and increase your store of seed
and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness.
You will be made rich in every way
so that you can be generous on every occasion,
and through us
your generosity
will result in thanksgiving to God.
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Simply put the principle states that:
If you do not give, you will not receive. That is a negative statement.
Let us be positive. Then it reads as: If you give, you will receive.
This principle is universal and is true in all spheres of life. If you
want love, give love. If you want honor and respect, give honor and
respect.
Extend this over to finances and to all our daily affairs and we have
the core of Jesus’ teachings as Jesus conceived exists in the
Kingdom of God. In the sermon on the mount Jesus clamped down
on the practical application of this principle. Thus in Luke 6: 27 on
wards we see Jesus advising thus:
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Luke 6:27-29 Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,
bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If
someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If
someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic.
Luke 6:30 Give to everyone who asks you,
and if anyone takes what belongs to you,
do not demand it back.
Luke 6:31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.
Luke 6:34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect
repayment, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' lend to
'sinners,' expecting to be repaid in full.
Luke 6:35-38
But love your enemies,
do good to them,
and lend to them without expecting to get anything back.
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Then your reward will be great,
and you will be
sons of the Most High,
because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.
Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
"Do not judge, and you will not be judged.
Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned.
Forgive, and you will be forgiven.
Give,
and
it will be given to you.
A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running
over,
will be poured into your lap.
For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you."
We receive the same measure, of course , pressed down and
multiplied. So if you give in thimbles, you receive back in thimbles. If
you measure in sacks, you receive a hundredfold in sacks.
There is a beautiful story illustrating this idea by the poet Laureate
of India Rabindranath Tagore in his collection of short stories, "The
King and the Beggar". The gist is as follows. One day a beggar
heard that the King was passing through the place where he was
standing. As the chariot passed by, the beggar stretched out his
begging bowl expecting a coin at least from the great King. But the
King stopped his chariot and he stretched out his hand begging the
beggar. The beggar was first perplexed. But the King insisted.
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Finally the beggar took out his begging bowl and took out a pinch of
his little rice - three grains of rice- and placed it in the palms of the
King. The king withdrew his palm and he stretched it out once more
and placed a pinch of rice back into the beggars bowl. Lo! There
were three grains of rice in gold. And the King went his way. The
beggar looked at the three golden grains and cried. " What a fool I
have been, I should have placed by entire bowl of rice in the hands
of the King."
Gal 6:7-10
Do not be deceived:
God cannot be mocked.
A man reaps what he sows.
The one who sows to please his sinful nature,
from that nature will reap destruction;
the one who sows to please the Spirit,
from the Spirit will reap eternal life.
Let us not become weary in doing good,
for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people,
especially to those who belong to the family of believers.
Prov 11:24-25
One man gives freely, yet gains even more;
another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty.
A generous man will prosper;
he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.
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These may seem so unrealistic and contrary to the wisdom of this
world. But these are the Kingdom Principles and these are eternal
laws on which the entire cosmos is built. Anything contrary just
destroys yourself and the world we live in.
WHY GIVING FIRST IS NECESSARY
In the logic of sowing and reaping, we need to sow before we
expect to reap. Even the vary fact that we live, relies heavily on it. If
we want to live, we must breathe. If we want to remain alive we
need to exhale before we could inhale again. If we insist only of
inhaling, we will simply suffocate. If we insist on exhaling only we
will still suffocate. Both are part of the process. If we exhale we will
inhale fresh air which will invigorate us. We in turn provide for the
cycle of distribution and balance of nature. Accumulation is
motivated by selfishness and leads to death.
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Consider a farmer. He needs to put his most perfect seeds in
sowing , if he has to get the best harvest. Better the seed, better will
be the harvest. In fact all farmers keep their choicest seeds at the
time of harvest for sowing as seeds. Every farming community
knows the meaning of eating the seed. It is the last resort. Because
without the seed there will be shortage and famine in the future.
The money and other resources in your hands are therefore the
seeds of the future prosperity. Don’t just eat it in selfishness.
In knowledge all teachers know that teaching a subject is the best
way to learn it. By giving what you have you multiply it. This is also
true in the spiritual realm. Your fellowship and spiritual
encouragement strengthens your maturity in Christ.
What I am trying to establish is that this principle of sowing and
reaping is a universal principle of growth and abundance. Not only
in the areas of agriculture, knowledge and spiritual realm but also in
the social and financial realm. Every money lender knows that you
give first to multiply your money. If you want to keep it in fixed
deposits it hardly grows.
4 THE SEED DECIDES THE CROP
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Another important fact is that it is the seed what you sow decides
what you receive back.
* The crop is decided by the seed you sow.
Mat 7:17-18 Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad
tree bears bad fruit.
A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good
fruit.
This is because, God created the universe with the law that like
produces like. This is the law of multiplication. This law is also found
in inanimate world. A single crystal will grow into larger crystal
surrounding the seed crystal. Beautiful ice crystals form by chains.
John 12:24-24
I tell you the truth,
unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only
a single seed.
But if it dies,
it produces many seeds.
The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his
life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
Hosea 10:12 Sow for yourselves righteousness, reap the fruit of
unfailing love, and break up your unplowed ground; for it is time to
seek the LORD, until he comes and showers righteousness on you.
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Hosea 10:13 But you have planted wickedness, you have reaped
evil, you have eaten the fruit of deception. Because you have
depended on your own strength and on your many warriors,
This is simply the essential teaching
Luke 6:38
Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down,
shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For
with the measure you use, it will be measured to you."
Want to try? This is the Kingdom Principle and it still work even in
this fallen world, simply because it is the basic law of the cosmos
that God has created. Kingdom of God is with us.
We are all knit together as one body
150

Prof. M.M.Ninan and Mrs. Ponnamma Ninan
Founding Moderator, International Christian Fellowship, Sanaa,
Yemen Arab Republic;
Pioneers of Sudan Theological College and of
the Sudan Pentecostal Churches, Juba, sudan.
1

"I am the LORD,
I have called you in righteousness,
I have taken you by the hand and kept
you;
I have given you
as a covenant
to the people
2

Works
of
Prof. M.M.Ninan
A Study on Baptism
This is a detailed study on the
various aspects of Christian
baptism. Is Baptism necessary for
salvation? What is the purpose and
function of Baptism? What is the
correct mode of baptism? What is
the difference between Covenant
Baptism and Believer's Baptism?
Sri Purusha Suktham
The fullness of Him
With commentary
One of the early Christian
document now form part of the
Hindu Scripture with additions .
Isavasya Upanishad
The doctrine of
Immanence of Jesus
A commentary on Isa Upanishad
One of the early Christian
document now form part of the
Hindu Scriptures
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The Development of
Hinduism
Traces the development of
Hinduism from the ashes of Vedic
religion under the varying
influences of hero worship and
local deitis to the present form. The
major forces were the coming of
Christianity and of Persian Gnostics
which molded it into the present
form
Rig Veda Samhita
This is the oldest translation of
Rig Veda by Ralph Griffith
along with a collection of
commentaries and studies
compiled from various sources
to study the oldest Veda by
Prof.M.M.Ninan
The Vedas
This collection contains the
following. The Yajur Veda,
Sama Veda, Atharvan Veda.
Brahma Samhita and Mantras
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The Emergence of
Hinduism from
Christianity
This book establishes that Hinduism is
really of very recent origin. Evidences
based on Archealogy, Linguistics and
History establishes beyond reasonable
doubt that the modern Hinduism is an
outgrowth of Thomas Christianity under the
influecne of Syrian Gnositicism. The myths
of Mahabali and Parasurama refers to the
defeat of Christians at the hands of the
Vaishnavite gnostics.
Hinduism What Really
Happened in India
The religion known today as
Hinduism is the Thomas
Churches of Inner India
established by St.Thomas which
was high jacked by the Gnostics
and Theosophists.
Riddles in Hinduism:
Dr.B.R.Ambedkar
How Brahminism distorted and
manipulatively interpreted
principles from other religious
thoughts.
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Selected Works of
Prof.M.M.Ninan Vol I
Selected works of Prof. M.M.Ninan
including: I AM - Symbols used by
Jesus to explain himself; The Seven
Churches of Revelation; The
Kingdom Parables; A Study on
Baptisml Perspectives on the Lord's
Supper; When was Jesus Born?
Genealogy of Jesus Theodicy,
Anthropology and Demonology
(God, Man and the Devil)
Selected Works of
Prof.M.M.Ninan Vol 2
This selection contains: The History of
Early Christianity in India; Hinduism is
a Heresy of Thomas Christianity;
History of the Malankara Churches;
The Time Line of Christian History;
Soteriology; Development of
Mariolatory; Principles of Prosperity in
the Kingdom of Heaven; Liturgy of
St.James; Who is Melchizedek?;
Christian Understanding of Trinity;
God called the Sudanese before Israel!!
Selected Works of
Prof.M.M.Ninan Vol 3
Prophecy of Daniel Quantum
Theology The Names of God Sola
Scriptora- What does it mean?
Cause Effect and the First Cause. A
Study of Hebrews Chapter One
Land and Sea Reoutes of Early
Christian Mission to India
Emergence of Hinduism from
Christianity.
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Lord's Appointed
Festivals
The Appointed Festivals of the
Lord as given to Moses on the
Mount of Zion is a calender
which clearly explains the total
Plan of Salvation of Mankind.
This Gospel in the Festival
Calendar is explained by Prof.
Ninan in this book.
Time Line Church
History
This is a compilation of the
Time Line of Church History
through two millenia.
The Seven Churches
This a study of the first three
chapters of the book of
Revelations to John.
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The Biblical Concept of
Man
What is Man? What is his relation with
God? Why is Man so important that
God incarnated into the lowest realms
of human existence? Professor Ninan
develops two dimensional vector
model of Man to explain the meaning
of fall of man and reinterprets the
Hebrew mystic ideas of Cosmos and
Creation and the Theology of Theosis
I AM: Symbols Jesus
Used to Explain Himself
During the end of his ministry, Jesus
gave several statements which started
with I AM in an attempt to explain who
he really was. These symbols therefore
give us an insight into the mystery of
incarnation and process of redemption.
These are explained in this book with
the clarity of a scientist.
Kingdom Parables
In Mathew 13 Jesus tells a series of
seven parables starting with the
phrase "The Kingdom of God is
like .....". Here is an attempt to
explain these seven parables as the
development of Christianity
through history. the point is that it
fits.
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The Word Became Flesh
This is a collection of over a 100
paintings by Prof. M.M.Ninan.
They include reproductions of
Oil on Paper and of Digital Art.
They are produced on the theme
of Redemption and Recreation
of Cosmos through the
incarnation of Word in Flesh.
The Principles of
Prosperity in the
Kingdom of God
Law of Tithing
Principle of Sowing and Reaping
Christian Stewardship
Six Enigmas in the Bible
Who is the Angel of the Lord?
Who is Melchizedek?
Cherubim, What are they?
Why do we have four gospels?
When was Jesus born?
Scriptural basis of Dec 25
Genealogy of Jesus. Son of
David and King of the Jews by
legal succession.
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Thinking loud on
Theodicy,
Soteriology,Trinity and
Hermeneutics
Explaining a Good God, Fallen
Man, Sin, Evil, Devil, Satan,
Salvation, Predestination,
Freedom of will and Trinity.
How do we interpret the Bible?
Prophecy of Daniel
Notes on the Bible Study group
discussion of the Mar Thoma
Church of Bay Area Bible Study
group..
Perspectives on Lord's
Table
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